PLANS  FOR 
BUSY  W9RK 


EDITED  BY 

.SARAH 

LOUISE 


-NRLF 


T  lOAJi, 


PLANS    FOR   BUSY   WORK 


((:[; 


PLANS  FOR  BUSY  WORK 


PREPARED    BY   THE 


BOSTON  PRIMARY  TEACHERS'  ASSOCIATION 


EDITED   BY       ,  . 

SARAH    LOUISE    ARNOLD 

SUPERVISOR  OF   SCHOOLS,   BOSTON 


"O'er  wayward  childhood  would'st  thou  hold  firm  rule 
And  sun  thee  in  the  light  of  happy  faces  ? 
Love,  Hope,  and  Patience,  these  must  be  thy  graces, 
And  in  thine  own  heart  must  they  first  keep  school " 


SILVER,   BURDETT    &    COMPANY 
NEW   YORK        BOSTON        CHICAGO 


l  II    I  HI 


^ 


Copyright,  1901, 
BY  SILVER,  BURDETT  AND  COMPANY 


PUBLISHERS'    NOTE 

THIS  volume  is  made  up  of  contributions  secured  by 
the  members  of  the  Boston  Primary  Teachers1  Associa- 
tion. These  teachers  recognized  the  demand  for  such 
material  in  primary  school  rooms,  and  appealed  to 
the  members  of  the  Association  to  report  their  suc- 
cessful plans  in  providing  Busy  Work  for  their  own 
classes.  A  committee  was  organized  to  collect  and 
collate  material. 

All  contributions  passed  through  the  hands  of  the 
committee,  and  were  afterwards  edited  by  Miss  Arnold, 
who  is  heartily  in  sympathy  with  the  work  of  the  Asso- 
ciation.  They  represent  the  experience  and  judgment 
of  the  most  thoughtful  primary  teachers  of  Boston. 

The  book  is  published  for  the  Primary  Teachers' 
Association,  and  any  profits  accruing  to  the  Association 
from  its  sale  will  be  used  for  their  work  among  the 
Boston  teachers. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

INTRODUCTION «     .  ix 

I.     THE  KINDERGARTEN  OCCUPATIONS 3 

II.    THE  DISTRIBUTION  AND  CARE  OF  MATERIALS  FOR 

BUSY  WORK 8 

III.  SENSE  TRAINING 13 

IV.  LANGUAGE,  SPELLING,  AND  READING 29 

V.     LANGUAGE,  SPELLING,  AND  READING  (continued)  .  42 

VI.     A  SERIES  OF  EXERCISES  IN  PHONICS  AND  SPELLING  50 

VII.     Miss  FULLER'S  PHONETIC  DRILL  CHART      ...  69 

VIII.     NUMBER  WORK  FOR  FIRST-GRADE  PUPILS  ...  75 

IX.     PROBLEMS  IN  NUMBER  FOR  GRADES  II.  AND  III.  88 

X.     EXERCISES  DEMANDING  PRACTICAL  JUDGMENT  IN 

NUMBER 93 

XI.     SEAT  WORK  IN  NUMBER  FOR  GRADES  II.  AND  III.  98 
XII.     MISCELLANEOUS  EXERCISES  WITH  ABSTRACT  NUM- 
BERS         100 

XIII.  EXERCISES  TO  ACCOMPANY  LESSONS  IN  DRAWING  109 

XIV.  A  SERIES  OF  CHARTS  FOR  BUSY  WORK  IN  DRAWING  117 
XV.     CHILDREN'S  DRAWINGS 126 

XVI.     FOR  PRACTICE  IN  WRITING 136 


INTRODUCTION 

THE  primary  teacher  must  solve  a  double  problem. 
She  must  not  only  teach  the  children  how  to  "  read, 
write,  and  cipher  "  under  her  guidance,  but  she  must 
also  teach  them  how  to  study  independently,  so  that 
they  may  be  prepared  to  use  books  for  themselves. 
While  the  teacher  of  higher  grades  may  content  her- 
self with  explaining  and  assigning  the  lessons,  leaving 
the  pupil  to  perform  his  tasks  unaided,  the  primary 
teacher  must  direct  the  period  of  study  as  well  as  the 
recitation  and  the  teaching  exercises.  In  an  ordinary 
school  of  from  forty  to  sixty  pupils,  not  more  than 
fifteen  or  twenty  should  be  reciting  at  once ;  the 
others  must  busy  themselves  at  the  desk,  table,  or 
blackboard.  Our  problem  is  to  devise  suitable  and 
profitable  occupation  for  these  pupils. 

Most  of  us  can  remember  the  earlier  days  of  school 
life,  when  the  little  children  swung  their  weary  feet 
from  the  high  benches,  yawned,  gazed  wistfully  out  of 
the  window,  and  longed  for  four  o'clock.  Their  only 
occupation  was  making  pictures  on  the  slate.  This,  in 
time,  gave  place  to  a  weary  repetition  of  the  letters  of 
the  alphabet,  and  at  last  to  "  sums."  But,  oh,  the 
wasted  hours  and  the  dull  indifference  which  they 
caused  ! 


x  INTRODUCTION 

We  are  beginning  to  learn  that  the  work  of  teaching 
does  not  consist  merely  in  hearing  recitations  and  se- 
curing answers  to  questions.  The  modern  teacher 
endeavors  to  fill  every  hour  of  the  child's  school  life 
with  happy,  helpful,  and  active  work.  "  Doing "  is 
usurping  the  place  which,  in  times  past,  was  accorded 
to  listening.  The  teacher  of  little  children,  not  content 
with  hearing  recitations  and  assigning  tasks,  provides 
occupation  for  these  hitherto  listless  hours.  This  is 
done  not  merely  with  the  hope  of  making  the  children 
still  or  keeping  them  busy.  We  have  learned  that  their 
growth  is  dependent  upon  right  activity  and  that  our 
function  is  to  provide  occasions  for  such  activity.  We 
have  come  dimly  to  apprehend  the  truth  that  it  is  the 
child's  deed  which  makes  him  master  of  the  idea  which 
we  are  endeavoring  to  impress.  Expression  is  the  vital 
element.  His  action,  and  not  ours  alone,  is  the  essential 
factor  in  his  growth. 

The  busy  work  program,  then,  thoughtfully  consid- 
ered, is  no  mere  list  of  devices  for  maintaining  a  quiet 
schoolroom ;  it  represents  a  thoughtful  provision  for 
the  actual  needs  of  the  children.  Rightly  planned,  it 
provides  fitting  tasks  by  means  of  which  the  child  tests 
his  knowledge  and  skill,  applies  the  new  truth  which 
he  has  learned,  and  weaves  the  new  idea  into  his 
expression. 

The  problem  is  not  so  simple  as  it  appears  to  the 
casual  observer,  who,  in  visiting  the  school,  sees  the 
children  happily  employed  with  what  seem  like  play- 
things. So  simple  and  so  natural  does  the  busy-ness 
seem  that  one  might  imagine  it  had  happened  without 
any  plan  or  intervention  on  the  part  of  the  teacher. 
But  the  experienced  teacher  realizes  that  serious  care 


INTRODUCTION  xi 

has  been  given  to  this  wise  and  natural  employment 
of  the  little  hands  and  the  eager  minds,  and  that  it 
is  this  very  "busy  work"  which  brings  to  fruition  the 
lessons  given  in  the  class. 

Every  exercise  in  seat  work  should  secure  one  of 
three  results.  It  should  make  clearer  the  lesson  which 
has  been  presented  in  the  class,  or  teach  a  new  lesson, 
or  afford  opportunity  for  practice  in  some  line  where 
skill  is  required.  For  example,  the  teacher  presents 
the  square  in  her  lesson  in  drawing.  The  child  folds, 
or  cuts,  or  draws  the  square  at  his  desk,  and  thus  per- 
ceives it  more  clearly  than  when  it  was  first  presented. 
Or  he  makes  an  original  design,  with  the  square  as  a 
unit.  Or,  through  practice  with  scissors  or  pencil,  he 
becomes  able  to  fold  or  to  cut  the  perfect  square. 

These  three  ends  may  fairly  be  considered  the  tests 
of  busy  work.  If  the  exercise  results  in  new  knowledge, 
in  clearer  perception  of  an  old  truth,  or  in  added  power 
to  see  or  to  do,  it  is  good.  If  it  simply  fills  the  time 
of  the  child,  requiring  neither  thought  nor  effort,  it  is 
dull  and  profitless,  and  might  as  well  be  omitted.  To 
pretend  to  do  something  which  is  not  worth  doing  at 
all,  is  demoralizing.  No  adult  would  submit  to  the 
process;  the  children  are  equally  conscious  of  their 
failure  under  these  circumstances. 

Busy  work,  to  be  truly  helpful,  must  engage  the 
children's  attention,  and  to  this  end  must  be  interesting. 
Everybody  knows  that  variety  is  an  element  of  interest, 
and  that  frequent  changes  of  playthings  help  to  hold 
the  young  child's  attention,  at  the  same  time  making 
a  return  to  the  old  material  a  delight.  Furthermore, 
the  material  must  be  attractive  to  the  child.  The  fact 
that  the  teacher  considers  it  good  for  the  purpose 


xii  INTRODUCTION 

is  not  enough.  The  pupil,  too,  must  enjoy  his  work 
if  his  interest  and  attention  are  to  be  held  to  his  task. 
We  do  not  always  realize  that  a  child's  attention  and 
interest  also  depend  largely  upon  his  own  conception  of 
the  purpose  of  the  work.  When  he  sees  that  his  labors 
accomplish  something  which  he  desires  to  accomplish, 
he  works  with  persistent  zeal.  The  busy  work,  to  be 
successful,  must  be  purposeful  and  must  secure  some- 
thing which  the  child  considers  a  satisfactory  result. 
Making  something  which  he  likes  to  make,  doing  some- 
thing which  he  likes  to  do,  is  profitable  to  him,  and 
profitable  busy  work  always  contains  this  element. 

While  the  child  sees  the  immediate  accomplishment, 
and  is  pleased  with  the  square  which  he  has  drawn,  or  the 
triangle  which  he  has  cut,  or  the  row  of  beads  which  he 
has  strung,  or  the  mat  which  he  has  woven,  the  teacher 
beholds  the  fuller  fruition.  She  knows  that  the  patient 
endeavor  which  entered  into  the  drawing,  or  the  cutting 
or  the  stringing,  results  in  greater  power  in  doing  and 
the  ability  to  persevere  longer  than  had  been  possible 
before.  While  making  the  square  the  child  learns  to 
see  more  clearly,  and  to  express  more  plainly  that 
which  he  sees.  Clearness  of  vision  and  power  to 
execute  grow  from  such  simple  exercises.  This  the 
teacher  knows,  although  the  child  realizes  nothing  of 
his  growth. 

The  following  pages  have  been  prepared  by  the 
members  of  the  Boston  Primary  Teachers'  Association. 
Every  contribution  represents  the  practical  experience 
of  some  teacher  who  has  secured  good  results  from  the 
use  of  the  method  or  device  which  she  recommends. 
It  is  not  expected  that  any  teacher  will  attempt  to 
follow  all  the  plans  which  are  described.  Each  must 


INTRODUCTION  xiii 

adopt  for  herself  the  methods  which  are  in  harmony 
with  her  own  work.  But  out  of  the  practical  experience 
of  many  teachers  should  come  real  service  to  those  who 
have  their  experience  yet  to  gain.  The  study  of  the 
exercises  which  are  here  submitted  cannot  fail  to  help 
the  teacher  who  is  still  struggling  with  the  problem  of 
busy  work. 

SARAH  LOUISE  ARNOLD. 

BOSTON,  April,  1901. 


INTRODUCTORY 


PLANS    FOR   BUSY    WORK 


I. 

THE   KINDERGARTEN   OCCUPATIONS 

BY  LAURA   FISHER, 
Director  of  Kindergartens,  Boston, 

THE  introduction  of  kindergarten  occupations  into 
the  primary  school  is  an  unfailing  sign  of  the  union 
between  these  two  closely  allied  grades  of  a  school 
system.  The  degree  to  which  this  work  can  be  extended, 
and  the  forms  it  shall  assume,  must  depend  largely  upon 
the  development  of  the  children  and  the  skill  of  the 
teacher. 

It  will  not  do  to  say,  because  these  occupations  are 
beneficial  and  developing,  that  therefore  children  of  all 
ages  should  use  them;  nor  will  it  be  safe  to  ignore 
the  work  already  done  and  the  skill  attained  before  the 
child  enters  school.  Repetition,  on  the  one  hand,  and 
undue  simplicity  on  the  other,  may  cause  the  best  kind 
of  work  available  to  fail  of  the  result  desired.  We  need 
to  remind  ourselves  that  the  kindergarten  occupations 
are  designed  mainly  for  children  between  the  ages  of 
four  and  six  or  seven  years ;  and  that  they  cannot  with 
safety  be  given  as  educational  employment  to  children 
beyond  this  age  in  the  same  form  in  which  they  are 


4  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

prescribed  in,  the  ;k;i!ide,rgarten.  Their  purpose  is  mani- 
fold.. .They,  ^hauld -of  course  minister  to  the  child's 
need'  -of  'Constructive  activity  and  creativeness ;  they 
should  develop  his  artistic  sense  and  cultivate  taste; 
they  should  fix  impressions  received  through  the  gifts  by 
providing  for  the  reproduction  of  these  impressions  and 
for  the  constructive  expression  of  the  same  ideas ;  they 
should  develop  observation  and  self-criticism  and  lead 
to  individual  and  independent  self-directed  activity. 

Under  the  direction  of  the  kindergartner,  these  re- 
sults can  be  and  are  achieved.  The  danger  in  the 
primary  school  will  result  from  the  fact  that,  when 
the  work  of  the  children  cannot  be  superintended  by 
the  teacher,  for  lack  of  time,  it  tends  to  become  purely 
mechanical. 

In  spite  of  these  possible  difficulties,  we  all  believe 
that  the  introduction  of  kindergarten  occupations  into 
the  school  is  a  distinct  advance,  and  we  have  faith  that 
the  enthusiasm  and  skill  characteristic  of  the  modern 
teacher  will  surmount  all  obstacles  and  achieve  success. 

In  considering  the  occupations,  it  is  necessary  to 
recognize  the  differences  inherent  in  them.  The  mate- 
rials used  are  more  or  less  flexible:  some  are  more 
suggestive  than  others;  some  require  more  technical 
skill  and  greater  thought. 

The  most  flexible  materials,  used  in  drawing,  color- 
ing, clay  modeling,  make  possible  more  finished  and 
artistic  work,  and  offer  to  the  child  the  greatest  op- 
portunity for  free  though  naturally  crude  expression. 

The  sewing,  folding,  weaving,  peas-work  and  card- 
board modeling  are  less  suggestive,  more  restricted, 
more  rigid,  and  more  limited  in  their  scope  than  the 
above-mentioned  occupations.  They,  in  general,  require 


THE    KINDERGARTEN    OCCUPATIONS      5 

greater  inventive  power  and  more  definite  ideas  on  the 
part  of  the  child  for  the  production  of  original  work 
of  real  significance.  On  the  whole,  they  are  not  as 
artistic,  although  the  beginnings  of  design  are  well 
developed  by  means  of  some  of  them. 

Crudities  permissible  in  the  kindergarten  should  be 
avoided  in  the  primary  school,  and  many  forms  legiti- 
mately used  with  younger  children  should  be  dropped 
when  they  enter  school. 

The  occupations  used  to  best  advantage  in  the  primary 
school  (provided  the  child  has  had  thorough  kinder- 
garten training)  are,  in  my  opinion,  clay  modeling, 
drawing  and  coloring,  peas-work,  cardboard  modeling, 
paper-folding,  with  some  paper-cutting  and  pasting,  and 
nature-work.  These  exercises,  carefully  planned,  should 
build  upon  what  has  already  been  accomplished  in  the 
kindergarten  and  should  be  carefully  graded  according 
to  suggestions  offered  by  Froebel. 

They  should  assume  three  general  forms :  the  Mathe- 
matical, the  ^Esthetic,  and  the  Useful.  As  the  child 
grows  in  knowledge  and  conscious  power,  the  ^Esthetic 
and  Mathematical  should  take  precedence  of  the  forms 
of  use;  and  the  production  of  objects  should  find  its 
place  in  the  manual  training  or  sloyd. 

Careful  observation  of  form  and  number,  hidden  in 
all  the  objects  produced,  should  constitute  an  important 
factor  of  the  work  done,  in  order  that  the  child  may  be 
made  familiar,  through  construction,  with  simple  mathe- 
matical facts  and  relations.  The  artistic  in  form,  color, 
and  arrangement  should  be  first  enjoyed  and  later  con- 
sciously recognized. 

The  objects  made  should  be  studied  in  their  relations 
to  nature  and  to  human  life  and  activities.  This  con- 


6  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

struction  can  easily  be  correlated  with  the  language 
exercises,  nature-study,  and  literature. 

The  series  of  exercises  should  be  so  planned  as  to  give 
scope  for  free  work,  prescribed  work,  and  logical 
sequence.  Each  of  these  has  a  place  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  child  and  the  occupation,  and  undue 
emphasis,  of  either,  produces  a  lack  of  balance  and 
growth.  The  children  should  be  encouraged  to  work 
along  the  suggested  lines  with  home  material,  that  they 
may  carry  into  the  home  the  power  and  interest 
awakened  in  the  school,  and  may  also  learn  to  express 
themselves  upon  and  through  the  materials  found  all 
about  them,  although  these  may  be  crude  and  not 
beautiful.  The  real  results  desired  and  aimed  at  must 
always  be  inner  power  and  thought;  and  these, 
achieved,  will  lead  the  children  to  look  upon  the  world 
and  its  things  as  their  opportunity,  even  though  the 
materials  provided  and  the  conditions  of  their  environ- 
ment may  be  imperfect. 

It  would  seem  to  me  quite  possible,  provided  the 
teacher  can  superintend  the  work,  to  introduce  some 
advanced  mathematical  gift  exercises  into  the  primary 
school,  although  if  the  children  spend  a  sufficient  length 
of  time  in  the  kindergarten,  these  are  unnecessary. 

The  real  bond  between  the  kindergarten  and  the 
school  is  the  spirit  they  have  in  common.  This  spirit 
will  evolve  the  specific  forms  through  which  it  expresses 
itself;  and  the  deeper  study  of  the  child's  nature  and 
needs  will  bring  forth  the  ways  and  means  by  which 
these  are  developed  and  met. 

As  we  learn  from  one  another  and  give  to  one  an- 
other, we  grow  nearer  together  and  nearer  to  the  child. 
It  has  been  a  source  of  great  joy  and  help  to  find  that 


THE    KINDERGARTEN    OCCUPATIONS     7 

primary  teachers  and  kindergartners  are  coming  ever 
closer  together;  and  no  recognition  the  kindergarten 
receives  can  be  more  gratifying  and  inspiring  than 
the  hospitality  accorded  it  by  primary  teachers,  who, 
in  work  such  as  this,  reinforce  its  influence  and 
strengthen  its  hold. 

Of  them  may  it  be  truly  said  that  they  have  realized 
Froebel's  deepest  desire,  for  they  too  show  us  how  to 
"  live  with  the  children." 


II. 

THE    DISTRIBUTION    AND   CARE  OF    MATERIALS 
FOR   BUSY   WORK 

INFORMAL  LETTERS  FROM  TEACHERS 
I. 

IN  considering  the  subject  of  seat  work,  one  of  the 
first  questions  with  me  has  been  "  How  can  I  distribute 
the  material  with  the  least  waste  of  time  ?  " 

I  confess  that  the  problem  is  not  an  easy  one.  To 
facilitate  matters  I  keep  as  much  material  as  possible 
in  individual  boxes.  Letters,  tablets,  sticks,  and  pegs 
are  so  arranged.  It  insures  a  more  equitable  division 
and  a  more  orderly  distribution. 

When  it  is  at  all  practicable  I  allow  each  child  to 
keep  his  own  box  in  his  desk.  Pegs  are  always  kept 
in  this  way.  The  first  of  the  year  the  boxes  are  filled 
with  common  shoemaker's  pegs,  which  the  children  at 
once  proceed  to  scatter  more  or  less  lavishly  upon  the 
floor.  Then  I  exhibit  to  their  admiring  gaze  a  box 
of  colored  pegs,  with  the  assurance  that  those  children 
who  do  not  drop  any  pegs  for  a  week  shall  have  theirs 
exchanged  for  these  beautiful  things.  The  excitement 
is  intense,  and  when,  at  the  appointed  time,  a  dozen  or 
more  children  have  earned  the  new  ones,  I  know  the 
battle  is  won,  for  no  self-respecting  child  will  tamely 
allow  his  neighbor  to  revel  in  the  luxury  of  colored 
pegs  while  he  ignobly  counts  the  mean  little  white  ones. 


DISTRIBUTION    OF    MATERIALS  9 

Then  if  a  child  does  not  take  proper  care  of  the  new 
ones,  they  are  taken  away  and  he  is  given  the  white 
ones  again  until  he  has  learned  to  be  careful.  I  rarely 
have  to  do  this,  however. 

In  many  schools  the  children  bring  boxes  for  pegs 
or  letters,  but  as  mine  are  not  able  to  provide  them, 
I  get  small  pasteboard  boxes  about  an  inch  deep  and 
two  and  a  half  inches  square  for  the  pegs,  and  others 
twice  as  large  for  the  letters.  The  small  boxes  cost 
from  ten  to  fifteen  cents  a  dozen,  and  the  larger  ones 
from  fifteen  to  twenty  cents.  In  the  box  with  the 
pegs  may  also  be  kept  the  wooden  square  which  the 
children  use  in  outlining  the  dominoes  for  number  work. 

The  other  material  in  boxes  is  in  charge  of  groups  of 
three  or  four  children  who  are  taught  how  to  care  for 
and  distribute  it.  These  groups  are  changed  from  time 
to  time,  to  allow  others  to  be  useful  as  well  as  distin- 
guished. If  the  material  is  to  be  used  early  in  the  ses- 
sion, it  is  distributed  before  school  and  collected  at 
recess.  If  after  recess,  it  is  distributed  at  recess  and 
collected  after  school. 

The  material  which  is  more  easily  cared  for,  like 
paper,  pictures  for  tracing,  scissors,  etc.,  is  passed  by 
one  child  from  each  row,  who  is  very  attentive,  or  has 
made  some  special  effort  in  the  right  direction  during 
the  session.  Thus  all  the  children  are  eligible  to  the 
honor. 

Of  course  there  is  occasionally  something  that  I  have 
to  distribute  myself,  but  I  try  to  do  as  little  of  that  work 
as  possible,  since  the  responsibility  is  good  for  the 

childrea 

C.  A.  S. 


io  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

II. 

Teach  the  child  at  the  head  of  each  line  to  act  as 
"  monitor,"  "  helper,"  or  "  distributer,"  or  choose  the 
child  who  has  tried  to  do  his  best  during  the  preceding 
lesson. 

Children  soon  learn  where  materials  are  kept  if  the 
places  are  easily  accessible  to  them,  and  a  bit  of  judi- 
cious praise  to  the  child  who  returns  a  thing  to  its 
proper  place  will  soon  bring  the  class  as  a  whole  to  a 
condition  of  care-taking. 

Begin  the  first  of  September  with  the  pegs.  Let 
some  careful  child  go  to  the  closet  and  find  the  box 
containing  them,  then  direct  him  how  to  give  them  to 
the  class.  Use  a  small  cup  or  box  as  a  measure.  The 
child  at  the  end  of  the  line  should  always  be  supplied 
first.  With  the  whole  class  attending,  I  praise  or  criti- 
cise the  way  in  which  the  monitor  does  his  work.  By 
pursuing  this  method  for  a  few  days,  several  children 
may  be  efficiently  trained,  and  gradually  nearly  all  the 
members  of  the  class. 

Such  a  drill  as  this  given  with  three  or  four  different 
materials  should  be  sufficient,  though  a  few  explicit 
directions  may  be  needed  when  any  new  material  is 
given  out,  later  in  the  year.  I  never  begin  to  work 
myself  till  I  see  that  every  child  has  begun  his  work. 

The  first  of  the  year  I  have  the  pencils  given  out 
when  needed.  After  that  time  each  child  who  brings 
a  neat  pasteboard  box  receives  a  pencil  to  keep.  The 
pencils  are  sharpened  regularly  twice  a  week ;  it  takes 
only  five  minutes  to  go  through  the  class.  If  any  child 
breaks  a  point  between  whiles,  I  mend  it  for  him,  if  he 
asks  before  or  after  school. 


DISTRIBUTION    OF    MATERIALS          11 

It  seems  well  for  each  child  to  have  some  form  of 
busy  work  in  his  desk  for  spare  moments.  For  this 
I  find  a  box  of  pegs,  or  letters,  or  books,  the  best. 
The  books  are  changed  once  a  month,  so  they  are 
always  entertaining.  M.  S.  C. 

III. 

If  the  teacher  of  the  first  grade  will  devote  a  few 
days  before  the  opening  of  school  in  September  to  the 
preparation  of  busy  work  for  the  coming  year,  she  will 
find  it  a  good  investment  of  time,  and  congratulate  her- 
self for  this  forehandedness  many  times  over. 

There  is  quite  a  difference  of  opinion  among  teachers 
as  to  which  portion  of  the  material  used  for  busy  work 
may  with  profit  be  kept  in  the  desks,  and  which  had 
best  be  cared  for  by  the  teacher. 

The  material  kept  in  desks  needs,  of  course,  over- 
sight by  the  teacher.  All  agree  that  a  great  deal  of 
the  material  cannot  be  kept  in  the  desks  from  day  to 
day.  Some  of  that  most  commonly  used  can,  with 
advantage,  be  so  kept.  A  set  of  shelves,  protected  by 
a  door  or  curtain,  is  a  great  convenience.  On  these  the 
material  may  be  kept,  stored  in  boxes.  It  is  easily  ac- 
cessible, and  comparatively  free  from  dust.  A  table  will 
answer  the  purpose,  if  the  shelves  cannot  be  obtained. 

Whenever  possible,  a  child  should  have  his  own  in- 
dividual pencil,  crayons,  scissors,  foot-rule,  paint-box, 
and  pegs.  One  large  box  will  hold  all,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  pegs,  which  may  be  kept  in  a  bag  about 
five  inches  square,  hung  upon  the  iron  crossbar  of  the 
desk.  The  loop  of  the  string  should  be  long,  to  allow 
of  the  bag  being  pulled  through  the  loop,  thus  obviat- 
ing the  use  of  tacks. 


12  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

Spool  boxes  are  almost  invaluable  for  keeping  mate- 
rial in  good  condition,  and  are  easily  distributed. 

Letters,  words,  and  pictures  for  matching  or  other 
uses  may  be  kept  in  the  same  way,  or  in  envelopes 
which  are  placed  in  a  compartment  box. 

Beads,  counters,  button-moulds,  strings,  etc.,  should 
be  kept  in  boxes. 

White  and  colored  paper,  cut  into  proper  sizes  and 
shape  for  various  exercises,  should  always  be  found  on 
the  shelf  or  table.  M.  E.  W. 

IV. 

I  like  to  give  out  two  kinds  of  busy  work  at  once, 
one  kind  for  plain  fare  and  one  kind  for  dessert;  the 
first  kind,  like  copying,  making  number  pictures,  mak- 
ing words  or  sentences  with  letters,  or  equations  with 
figures,  to  be  finished  before  the  other  kind  is  taken. 
Then  the  children  who  have  worked  quietly  and  busily, 
and  have  done  their  best,  use  the  other  busy  work. 
For  this  I  use  stencils,  the  colored  paper  forms  for 
sorting  and  making  geometrical  designs,  pegs  in  the 
rainbow  colors  for  designs,  pictures  with,  the  words  to 
match  them,  tracing  paper  with  pictures,  paper-cutting, 
and  so  forth. 

I  make  the  busy  work  for  one  day  a  help  to  the  work 
of  that  day,  or  a  review  and  drill  on  work  that  has  been 
done,  or  a  preparation  for  something  which  is  to  be 
taught. 

The  children  usually  distribute  and  collect  the  mate- 
rial. The  directions  are  often  given  before  the  material 
is  distributed,  and  then  one  child  can  do  the  work 
while  I  am  teaching  another  group.  B.  E.  D. 


III. 

5ENSE  TRAINING 

ALL  teachers  of  lowest  primary  grades  will  find  in  their 
classes  many  children  who  are  not  mature  enough  to  do  the 
work  which  is  provided  for  first-grade  pupils.  They  have 
not  yet  learned  to  observe  carefully,  and  therefore  cannot  imi- 
tate well ;  their  muscles  are  not  trained  to  hold  the  pencil  or 
the  scissors ;  they  have  very  little  ability  to  construct ;  they 
cannot  imagine  the  conditions  which  are  expressed  in  the 
sentence  or  in  the  problem  in  number. 

For  such  pupils  it  is  absolutely  necessary  to  provide  exer- 
cises which  will  afford  practice  in  observation,  imitation,  and 
construction.  Exercises  of  this  sort  have  been  prepared,  and 
are  here  grouped  under  the  title  "  Sense  Training."  They 
will  be  found  helpful  for  immature  pupils  in  both  first  and 
second  grades,  and  valuable  for  all  first-grade  children  in  the 
first  half-year  of  their  school-work.  Many  of  the  exercises  can 
be  made  helpful  if  related  to  the  ordinary  class  instruction, 
even  through  the  second  grade. 

The  young  teacher  may  need  the  suggestion  that  the  work 
with  figures  and  words,  which  is  so  often  attempted  by  little 
children,  often  hinders  their  progress,  by  presenting  forms 
which  represent  no  idea  to  them.  They  work  with  figures, 
but  do  not  think  numbers ;  they  work  with  words,  but  do  not 
associate  the  form  with  the  idea.  Therefore  their  reading  is 
mechanical,  and  their  "  number  sense  "  develops  very  slowly. 
The  foundation  for  rapid  and  accurate  work  in  the  future  lies 
in  the  development  of  observation,  imagination,  and  skill  in 


I4  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

doing.  It  is  a  mistake  to  count  such  occupation  as  mere  "  busy 
work."  It  is  worth  while  to  give  the  time  allotted  to  the  reci- 
tation to  instruction  in  these  exercises,  that  the  children  may 
become  independent  and  helpful  in  their  future  practice.  In 
these  exercises  teaching  should  precede  doing,  and  the  children 
should  be  left  to  independent  practice  only  when  they  have 
learned  how  to  follow  the  teacher's  directions.  —  ED. 


EXERCISES  IN  OBSERVATION,  IMITATION,  AND 
CONSTRUCTION 

I. 

Material :   colored  pegs,  sticks,  split  peas,  or  lentils. 

Note :  Practice  in  arranging  pegs  may  first  be  given  in  sim- 
ple line  work.  Direction :  Make  a  line  as  long  as  your 
longest  finger;  make  another  a  little  way  from  that,  and 
of  the  same  length ;  fill  your  desk-top  with  lines  of  just 
the  same  length.  Or,  make  a  line  as  long  as  your  little 
finger;  make  another  twice  as  long;  another  three  times 
as  long,  etc.  Or,  make  a  small  square,  make  one  twice 
as  large.  Or,  make  a  small  oblong,  make  one  twice  as  long, 
but  the  same  width,  etc. 

1.  Assort  the  pegs  according  to  color.  Grade  I. 

2.  Make  a  simple  border,  following  a  pattern  which 
is   drawn   upon  the  board,  and   using  pegs  of  a  given 
color.  Grade  I. 

3.  Copy  a  simple  border,  using  any  color  or  colors 

at  will.  Grade  I. 

4.  Make  original  border   or  other  design,  choosing 

Colors    at   will.  Grade  I. 

5.  Reproduce  with  pegs  one  or  more  of  the  figures 
upon  the  chart.     (See  pages  118-125.)  Grade  1 


SENSE    TRAINING  15 

6.  Outline  with   pegs  a  geometric  figure  which  has 
previously  been    drawn    upon   a  large    sheet   of  card- 
board. Grade  I. 

7.  Outline  letters,  as  in  6.  Grade  I. 

8.  Lay  vertical,  horizontal,  or  slanting  lines,  no  re- 
strictions as  to  length  being  given.  Grade  I. 

9.  Lay   the    same    lines    at    given    lengths,    first   by 
measure,  then  by  the  eye  alone.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

10.  Lay  a  square  of  a  given  color.  Grade  I. 

11.  Lay  a  square,  using  pegs  of  one  color,  and  make 
the  diameters  out  of  pegs  of  a  different  color.        Grade  I. 

12.  Lay  a  square,  using  pegs  of  a  given  color,  and 
make  the  diagonals  of  a  contrasting  color.  Grade  I. 

13.  Lay  oblongs,  circles,  and  triangles  in  the  same 
manner.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

14.  Lay  right  angles,  using  pegs  of  a  given  or  chosen 
color.  Grade  I. 

15.  Make  borders,  using  right  angles  only. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 

16.  Lay  acute  or  obtuse  angles. 

17.  Make  borders  in  which  acute  angles  are  repeated. 

Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

18.  Lay  squares,  rectangles,  and  triangles  of  given 
dimensions  as  directed  by  teacher.      Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

19.  Copy    simple    pictures    in    outline,    as    houses, 
trees,  etc.  Grade  I. 

20.  Repeat  a  given  number  of  lines,  vertical,  hori- 
zontal, and  parallel.     Copy  outlines  of  objects,  such  as 
clock,    chair,   house,   etc.     The    exercises    may    be    in- 
creased   in  difficulty  by  requiring   a   definite    number 
of  pegs  to  a  line.  Grade  I. 

21.  Lay  designs  with  pegs,  then  copy  on  paper.     As 
an  incentive,  the  most  faithful  children  may  color  them 
with  crayons.  Grade  I. 


16  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

22.  Lay  a  square  with  pegs  and  inscribe  a  circle  or 
a  triangle.  Grade  I. 

23.  Lay  a  circle,  and  inscribe  a  square  or  triangle. 

Grade  I. 

24.  Lay  with  pegs  some  form   connected  with   the 
work  of  the  day,  no  pattern  being  given.  Grade  I. 


II. 

Material :  Paper  or  cardboard,  cut  in  geometrical 
forms  of  different  shapes,  sizes,  colors. 

Note:  Boxes  of  prepared  tablets  may  be  obtained  for  this 
purpose,  but  a  collection  prepared  by  the  teacher  herself, 
or  made  with  the  assistance  of  the  older  children,  will  be 
even  more  helpful  for  the  general  purpose  of  assorting  and 
arranging.  The  tablets  which  are  cut  by  machine  will  be 
more  helpful  in  making  designs,  as  they  will  be  more  exact 
than  those  made  by  the  pupils. 

1.  Assort  forms  according  to  color.  Grade  I. 

2.  Assort  according  to  size.  Grade  I. 

3.  Assort  according  to  shape.     Place  together  those 
which  are  like  in  form  without  regard  to  size.       Grade  I. 

4.  Place    in    rows    figures    having   same    number   of 
sides.  Grade  I. 

5.  Assort   the    forms   according   to    angles,    placing 
together   those   forms   which    have    right   angles,    and 

SO   on.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

6.  Copy  a  given  form  exactly  and  then  repeat,  in- 
creasing the  size  but  retaining  the  proportion. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 

7.  Draw  picture  of  some  object  which  is  like  a  given 
form.  Grades  I.  and  II. 


SENSE    TRAINING  17 

8.  Instead  of  the  cardboard  forms,  use  seeds  having 
different  shapes  and  sizes.  These  may  be  assorted  as 
in  the  above  exercises.  Grade  I. 

III. 

FOLDING 

Material:    Paper   in   geometric   forms   which    may   be 
folded,  pressed,  or  cut,  in  straight  lines. 

1.  Fold  and  cut  paper  in  straight  lines.  Grade  I. 

2.  Fold  and  cut  squares  and  oblongs  on  their  diame- 
ters or  diagonals.  Grade  I. 

3.  Fold  and  cut  circles  on  their  diameters.        Grade  I. 

4.  Fold  and  cut  paper  squares  into  pin  wheels. 

Grade  I. 

5.  Get  the  square  from  the  oblong  paper  by  folding 
down  the  superfluous  piece.  Grade  I. 

6.  The   different   angles    may   be    folded    from   the 
square,  from  the  oblong  and  circle.          Grades  Land  n. 

7.  Fold,  from  memory,  any  forms  which  have  been 
previously  dictated.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

8.  Fold    and    cut   strips    of    paper   into    halves    and 
fourths.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

9.  Fold  and  cut  forms  into  thirds,  fourths,  etc. 

Grades  II.  and  III. 

10.  Fold  circles  into  halves  and  fourths.  Grade  I. 

11.  Draw  forms  to  represent  a  folded  piece  of  paper. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 

12.  Fold  and  cut  hats  and  dresses  for  paper  dolls. 

13.  Fold  and  cut  furniture  for  doll-houses,  —  chairs, 
tables,  bureaus,  boxes,  etc.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 


i8  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

IV. 
CUTTING 

Material:   Paper  and   pencils,  scissors  and  cardboard 
patterns. 

1.  Mark  around  pattern  and  then  cut  out  the  figure. 
(Use  geometric  forms  or  representations  of  leaf,  flower, 
or  familiar  object.)  Grade  I. 

2.  Cut  pictures  from  papers.  Grade  I. 

3.  Cut  designs  which  have  been  folded. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 

4.  Cut  squares,  triangles,  etc.,  of  a  given  size,  free- 
hand. Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

5.  Cut  straight   lines  which   have   been  ruled,  thus 
learning  to  cut  to  a  line.  Grade  I. 

6.  Fold  and  cut  sheets  of  paper  which  are  to  be  used 
in  the  class  for  different  purposes.  Grade  I. 

7.  Cut  and  dress  paper  dolls  at  pleasure.  Grade  I. 

8.  Cut,  from  paper  or  cardboard,  representations  of 
household  furniture,  boxes,  bureaus,  bookcases,  desks, 

chairs,  sofas,  beds,  etc.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

9.  Cut,  from  seed  and  vegetable  catalogues,  pictures 
of  the  fruits  and  flowers.     Paste  them  upon  cards  and 
write  the  name  under  each.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

10.  Cut,  free-hand,  from  paper,  forms  of  animal  and 
vegetable  life.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

11.  Cut,  free-hand,  representations  of  familiar  stones. 

Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

120    Colored  paper  may  be  folded  and  cut  into  strips 
for  chains  for  decorating  the  room  or  the    Christmas 

tree.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

Note:  This  is  a  very  valuable  exercise  because  all  the  children 
may  unite  in  the  work. 


SENSE    TRAINING  19 

V. 

STRINGING    BEADS,    SEEDS,    AND    BERRIES 

Material :  Wooden  beads  in  different  geometric  forms, 
or  glass  beads,  straws  or  even  wooden  button-moulds 
stained  in  different  colors. 

1.  String  the  beads,  arranging  the  colors  and  forms 
at  pleasure.  Grade  I. 

2.  String    in    twos,    threes,    or    fours,    using    given 

colors.  Grade  I. 

3.  String  two  and  one,  or  three  and  one,  etc.,  using 
given  colors.  Grade  I. 

4.  String  seeds  and  berries  to  form  a  fringe  or  deco- 
ration for  the  school-room  door  or  window.  Grade  I. 

VI. 

CLAY    MODELING 

Material:  Clay. 

1.  Model  fruit  which  has  been  studied  in  the  class 

exercise.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

2.  Model  geometric   solids   after  observing  them  in 
the  class  exercise.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  in. 

3.  A  tile   may  be    moulded   and   decorated    by  im- 
pression. Grade  I. 

4.  The  impress  of  leaves  may  be  taken  by  laying  a 
flat  mat  of  clay  on  a  square  or  circle  of  paper,  laying 
the  leaf  upon  the  clay  and  pressing  down  firmly.     With 
a  pin,  the  leaf  may  then  be  outlined  upon  the  clay. 

Grade  I. 

5.  Sand  pans,  or  clay,  may  be  used  to  mould  hills, 
valleys,  farms,  etc.,  something  to  represent  houses,  trees, 
and   animals  being  provided.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 


20  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

6.  Model  cocoons,  or  any  other  natural  objects  stud- 
ied in  the  school-room.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

Note :  Numbers  3  and  4  are  not  approved  for  higher  grades. 
Clay  should  be  placed  in  a  mass  on  tile  and  picked  up  into 
the  desired  form. 

VII. 

EXERCISES    TO    DEVELOP    POWER    TO    RECOGNIZE, 
NAME,    AND    ARRANGE    COLORS 

Material:  Colored  paper,  worsteds,  paints,  etc. 

1.  Give  each  child  a  box,  envelope,  or   handful  of 
papers,   or   cardboard    squares,  circles   or   oblongs,  of 
different  colors.     Let  him  sort  according  to  color. 

These  forms  may  be  bought  at  school-supply  rooms, 
or  the  teacher  may  cut  them  from  paper  or  cardboard 
at  very  small  expense.  Grade  I. 

2.  Mark   colored    paper  in    narrow  strips.     Provide 
each  child  with  scissors,  and  let  him  cut  on  the  pencilled 
line. 

If  the  children  are  unskillful  with  the  scissors,  let  them 
practice  cutting  the  blue  lines  that  are  found  on  white 
writing  paper.  Grade  I. 

The  colored  slips  may  be  used  for  weaving,  or  the 
ends  may  be  pasted  together  to  form  a  chain,  like  a 
dandelion  chain. 

3.  Fill    envelopes   with   colored    paper   cut    in   any 
desired  form. 

Each  envelope  should  contain  six  or  seven  tints  and 
shades  of  each  of  the  standard  colors. 

Each  child,  on  receiving  an  envelope,  should  be 
directed  to  select  all  the  tints  and  shades  of  one  color 
and  arrange  them  in  scale  from  light  to  dark.  Or,  he 


SENSE    TRAINING  21 

may  place  all  the  reds  in  one  pile,  all  the  blues  in  an- 
other, and  SO  on.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

4.  Give  every  pupil  an  envelope  containing  paper 
oblongs  in  the  spectrum  colors.     Direct  him  to  arrange 
in  the  order  of  the  spectrum. 

5.  Give  every  pupil  an  envelope  containing  squares, 
circles,  triangles,  and  other  forms.     Arrange  in  designs. 

(Tints  and  shades  may  be  added  later.) 

Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

6.  Direct  children  to  trace  circles  on  colored  paper. 
Provide  scissors  and  have  these  circles  cut  out  and 

preserved  for  future  use  in  laying  designs  or  in  pasting. 
Other  forms  may  be  used.    If  the  children  are  allowed 
to  keep  this  collection  in  their  desks,  it  is  likely  to 
provide  an  unending  source  of  entertainment  for  other- 
wise idle  moments.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

7.  Provide  each  child  with  a  pasteboard  circle  four  or 
five  inches  in  diameter,  also  a  sheet  of  colored  paper. 

Direct  him  to  place  the  cardboard  on  the  sheet  of 
paper  and  trace  around  it,  then  cut  it  on  the  pencilled 
line. 

A  number  of  circles  may  be  cut  and  folded  into 
halves,  fourths,  or  eighths.  If  well  cut,  the  parts  may 
be  arranged  in  designs  and  pasted. 

Two  sizes  of  circles  may  be  used,  thus  increasing  the 
possibility  of  pleasing  designs.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

8.  Shapes  of  leaves,,  flowers,  plants,  and  vegetables 
may  be  cut  from  colored  cardboard. 

These  may  be  sorted  according  to  color  and  shape. 

Later  in  the  year,  the  children  may  trace  around  these 
forms. 

This  material  may  be  gathered  from  magazines  and 
papers,  and  especially  seedsmen's  catalogues.  Grade  I. 


22  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

9.  Direct  the  children  to  sort  in  separate  piles  the 
colored   tablets  which  have  been  provided,  putting  all 
the  circles  of  one  color  in  one  pile ;    below  put  all  the 
squares  of  same  color,  then  the  oblongs.  Grade  I. 

10.  Let  the  children  arrange  the  colors  in  the  spec- 
trum order.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

11.  Let  them  make  a  color  scale  from  the  darkest  to 
the  lightest,  or  vice  versa.  Grades  I.,  IL,  and  ill. 

12.  Direct  them  to  select  a  given  form  of  a  given 

color.  Grade  I. 

13.  Form  borders  of  given  colors.   Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

14.  Make  designs  in  given  colors.   Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

15.  Make  designs  in  any  chosen  colors.     (The  teach- 
er should  be  careful  to  commend  those  designs  which 
are  harmonious  in  coloring  and  arrangement.) 

Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

16.  Arrange,  on  slips  of  cardboard,  seven  colors  and 
their  names.      Place  one  slip  in  an  envelope  with  six 
duplicates  of  each  color  and  name. 

Give  such  an  envelope  to  each  child,  directing  him  to 
match  colors  and  attach  the  fitting  name  to  each. 

Later  in  the  term,  letters  may  be  added  to  the  con- 
tents of  the  envelope  and  the  words  formed  from  these. 

Grade  I. 

17.  Use  worsteds   of  the    prismatic   colors  cut  into 
pieces  one  inch  and  two  inches  long. 

Give  a  handful  of  pieces  to  each  child  and  direct  him 
to  arrange  them  in  different  piles,  according  to  color. 

Grade  I. 

Later  in  the  year,  tints  and  shades  may  be  added, 
making  the  sorting  more  difficult 

(The  worsteds  may  also  be  sorted  according  to 
lengths.  Bits  of  silk  and  ribbon  may  be  used  instead  of 

worsteds.)  Grades  I.  and  II. 


SENSE    TRAINING  23 

18.  Allow  the  children  to  paint  representations  of 
natural  objects.  Paint-boxes  may  be  kept  in  the  desk. 

The  pencil  should  not  be  used  to  outline  in  the 
painting  exercises. 

VIII. 

"WEAVING 

Weaving  is  one  of  the  most  profitable  occupations  for 
primary  classes.  It  may  be  begun  in  the  first  grade, 
and  may  be  used  with  advantage  through  all  primary 
classes. 

In  teaching  the  process,  use  mats  of  some  durable 
material,  as  leather,  enamel  cloth,  or  curtain  holland. 
These  mats  may  be  4  X  6  inches,  and  should  be  cut 
with  a  penknife  and  ruler  into  strips  one  half  an  inch 
wide,  leaving  an  uncut  margin  of  equal  width  on  the 
four  sides  of  the  mat.  Instead  of  the  mats,  slate-frames 
may  be  used,  with  broad  tapes  tacked  from  end  to  end 
for  the  woof  or  foundation. 

Use  inch  or  half-inch  splints  in  the  first  lessons.  The 
simplest  pattern  is  one  under,  one  over,  one  under,  one 
over,  and  so  on.  The  second  splint  would,  of  course, 
reverse  the  order. 

More  difficult  patterns  may  be  introduced  after  facility 
has  been  acquired.  As  soon  as  the  children  understand 
the  use  of  the  mats  and  the  splints,  they  may  construct 
little  looms  for  themselves  and  weave  mats  of  raffia  and 
cord. 

Raffia  is  a  fibrous  material  which  florists  use  in  tying 
plants.  It  may  be  bought  of  the  florist  for  a  compara- 
tively small  sum ;  twenty-five  cents  would  supply  an 
ordinary  class  for  a  month  or  six  weeks. 


24  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

A  convenient  loom  may  be  made  from  an  old  slate- 
frame.  The  lengthwise  strands,  or  the  woof,  may  be 
made  of  cord  fastened  upon  tacks  in  the  frame  of  the 
slate.  The  warp,  or  filling,  may  be  of  raffia,  or  long 
strips  of  cloth,  or  even  of  splints.  In  using  the  cord 
and  raffia,  or  cloth,  the  children  will  tend  to  make  the 
mat  narrow  in  the  middle.  This  may  be  prevented  by 
using  long  knitting-needles  or  strips  of  stout  wire  for 
the  two  outside  strands,  and  withdrawing  them  after 
the  mat  is  completed. 

The  advantage  of  this  sort  of  weaving  is  that  the 
product  is  a  comparatively  durable  article  which  may 
be  put  to  some  use  for  the  child.  The  mat  may  deco- 
rate the  doll-house,  or  may  be  placed  under  the  ink- 
stand on  the  desk,  or  beneath  a  vase  of  flowers  or  a 
growing  plant.  If  stout  enough,  it  may  be  used  as 
a  holder. 

In  connection  with  these  lessons,  the  children  should 
observe  the  garments  which  have  been  woven  for  them. 
The  story  of  the  old-time  weaving  should  be  told  to 
them,  and  lessons  upon  textile  materials  —  wool,  flax, 
cotton,  and  silk  —  should  be  added. 

The  old-fashioned  spool  knitting-work  which  every 
teacher  knows,  is  also  recommended.  The  knitting 
may  be  done  with  cotton  yarn,  worsted,  woollen 
yarn,  or  with  cord,  and  the  product  sewed  into  mats, 
holders,  etc. 

Simple  basket-making  may  be  added  in  schools 
where  material  can  be  easily  secured,  and  where  a 
basket-maker  is  ready  to  give  the  teacher  a  few  prac- 
tical lessons. 


SENSE    TRAINING  25 

IX. 
MISCELLANEOUS 

Little  children  should  not  be  required  to  work  at 
their  desks  more  than  a  half-hour  at  a  time,  without 
exercise. 

The  children  of  Grade  I.  may  be  sent  into  the  cor- 
ridors, or  better  still,  out  of  doors,  for  two  or  three 
minutes'  vigorous  play  with  bean-bags  or  balls.  Some 
older  children  from  other  classes  may  accompany  them. 

Children  of  any  grade  may  be  sent  out  to  collect  seeds 
or  leaves  of  a  certain  tree  or  plant,  as  a  reward  for  faith- 
ful work. 

Work  at  the  table  or  blackboard  should  alternate 
with  work  at  the  seat,  whenever  feasible.  Many  of 
the  exercises  taken  in  the  seats  may  just  as  easily  be 
performed  at  the  blackboard. 


LANGUAGE,  SPELLING,  AND 
READING 


IV. 

LANGUAGE,    SPELLING,    AND   READING 

Exercise  i.  —  Matching  words  which  accompany  and 
name  a  picture.  To  be  used  chiefly  in  Grade  I. 
Suitable  for  first  three  months  of  school. 

Material :  Pictures  or  sketches ;  printed  words ;  envel- 
opes. 

Procure  from  the  printer  slips  of  printed  words,  hav- 
ing many  duplicates  of  each  word.  One  hundred  dupli- 
cates of  each  word  is  a  sufficient  number  to  work  with 
in  a  school  of  forty  children. 

These  slips  can  be  printed  for  about  fifty  cents  a 
thousand,  if  a  large  number  is  ordered.  If  the  slips  are 
cut  into  separate  words  by  the  printer,  the  cost  will  be 
slightly  increased. 

Cut  pictures  from  old  books,  illustrating  the  words 
which  are  taught  in  the  reading  lessons  during  the  first 
two  months.  Or,  if  you  are  able  to  sketch,  draw  the 
desired  pictures  in  hectograph  ink,  and  hectographs  the 
sketches.  These  pictures  should  be  separated  into  sets 
of  five  or  six,  each  set  containing  a  group  of  words  hav- 
ing some  relation  to  one  another;  for  example,  papa, 
mamma,  Alice,  Willie,  baby,  in  one  set.  Flower,  leaf, 
bud,  tree,  garden,  in  another  set. 

If  sixty  different  words  are  printed,  and  correspond- 
ing pictures  obtained,  the  teacher  has  materials  for  ten 
different  sets  of  envelopes.  In  envelope  one  are  put 


30  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

five  or  six  pictures  and  five  or  six  words  corresponding 
to  each  picture,  one  of  the  words  being  firmly  glued  to 
the  picture.  There  will  then  be  about  twenty-five  loose 
words  in  the  envelopes. 

The  child  proceeds  to  match  the  loose  words  to  those 
attached  to  the  picture.  It  is  of  the  greatest  impor- 
tance that  time  should  be  taken  to  hear  him  repeat 
the  words  at  the  close  of  the  busy  work  period.  When 
he  is  able  to  match  the  words  in  the  first  set,  quickly 
and  correctly,  a  second  set  is  given  to  him ;  if  there 
are  ten  sets,  he  teaches  himself  sixty  words  in  this 
way. 

It  is  better  that  this  matching  of  whole  words  should 
precede  the  matching  of  letters  or  the  forming  of  words 
from  letters.  Recognition  of  entire  words  should  pre- 
cede the  analysis  of  words  into  letters. 

The  words  may  be  written  in  script  if  preferred.  By 
using  script  for  board  work  and  print  for  seat  work, 
script  and  print  are  carried  along  easily  together. 


MODEL 


garden 
(Picture) 

flower 
(Picture) 

leaf 
(Picture) 

bud 
(Picture) 

tree 
(Picture) 

garden 

flower 

leaf 

bud 

tree 

garden 

flower 

leaf 

bud 

tree 

garden 

flower 

leaf 

bud 

tree 

garden 

flower 

leaf 

bud 

tree 

garden 

flower 

leaf 

bud 

tree 

LANGUAGE,    SPELLING,    READING       31 

Exercise  2.  —  Matching  words  which  have  been 
learned  in  the  reading  lesson.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material:  Words  copied  on  the  hectograph,  and  en- 
velopes or  boxes. 

Using  hectograph  ink,  divide  a  sheet  of  paper  into 
squares,  and  write  in  each  square  a  word  which  has 
been  learned  by  the  class.  Make  duplicate  copies  by 
using  the  hectograph. 

A  box  and  a  sheet  of  words  are  given  to  each  child. 
By  following  the  lines  of  the  squares,  the  children  are 
able  to  cut  their  own  words,  and  place  them  in  the 
boxes  which  are  kept  in  the  desks. 

New  words  may  be  added  from  time  to  time  as  they 
are  learned  in  the  board  lessons.  These  words  afford 
a  variety  of  exercises.  The  child  may  place  the  words 
which  he  knows  at  one  side  of  the  desk,  and  those  he 
does  not  know  at  the  other  side.  Or  he  may  arrange 
them  in  some  certain  order  on  the  blackboard.  Or, 
if  there  are  several  duplicates  of  each  word,  he  may 
sort  the  words,  placing  together  those  which  are  alike. 
Later  in  the  year  these  words  may  be  used  to  form 
sentences,  which  may  be  original  or  copied. 

Caution :  Be  sure  to  take  time  to  hear  the  children  re- 
peat the  words  which  they  have  arranged  on  their  desks. 

Exercise     3.  -  -  Finding,     matching,     and     arranging 

words.  Grade  I. 

Material:  Cardboard  containing  large  copy  of  each 
word,  boxes  or  envelopes  containing  printed  dupli- 
cates of  the  same  word. 

After  teaching  fifty  words  as  wholes,  write  each  word 
in  script  with  a  rubber  pen  upon  a  sheet  of  cardboard 


3z  PLANS    FOR    BUSY 

about  ten  inches  long  and  five  wide.  As  these  words 
are  to  be  seen  by  the  children  across  the  room,  it  is 
necessary  that  they  should  be  written  in  a  very  large 
plain  hand. 

With  twine,  fasten  six  of  these  words  together  to  form 
a  ladder.  Form  nine  or  ten  of  these  ladders.  At  first 
hang  one  of  these  ladders  on  the  wall.  Give  the  chil- 
dren boxes  containing  these  same  words  in  print,  two 
copies  of  each  word  on  all  the  ladders,  —  about  one 
hundred  words  in  all.  The  child  forms  the  ladder  twice 
on  his  desk.  As  he  is  obliged  to  search  among  all  his 
words  for  the  correct  ones,  he  is  employed  for  a  con- 
siderable time,  during  which  period  he  is  attentively 
observing  the  forms  of  the  words.  Soon  all  the  ladders 
may  be  hung  upon  the  wall  and  the  child  may  copy 
any  that  he  chooses.  The  boxes  and  words  are  num- 
bered so  that  lost  words  may  be  returned  to  the  box  in 
which  they  belong. 

This  is  good  work  for  spare  minutes,  and  is  suit- 
able for  use  at  any  time  during  the  year. 

Exercise  4.  —  Individual  work  selected  by  the  pupils. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 
Material :  Blank  book,  or  block  of  paper. 

Each  child  may  have  a  block  of  paper  in  his  desk  to 
be  used  as  a  "  scribbling  block."  He  is  allowed  to  put 
anything  he  chooses  upon  it.  If  preferred,  a  small 
book  may  be  made  by  fastening  several  sheets  of  paper 
together  with  clasp-fasteners. 

Exercise  5.  —  Tracing  and  copying.  Grade  I. 

Material:    Written  word  or  sentence;    the  paper  for 
copying. 


LANGUAGE,    SPELLING,    READING        33 

Give  each  child  a  slip  of  paper,  on  which  is  written  a 
sentence  or  word  in  large  script.  The  child  first  traces 
over  the  lines  on  the  slip,  then  copies  the  same  word  or 
sentence  on  another  slip  of  paper. 

Exercise  6. —  Finding  and  matching  words.          Grade  I. 
Material :  Pictures,  envelopes,  printed  words. 

Have  envelopes  filled  with  pictures.  On  each  picture 
is  written  the  word  which  is  suggested  by  the  picture. 
On  the  outside  of  each  envelope  are  written  the  words 
corresponding  to  the  pictures  within.  The  children 
place  the  pictures  on  the  desk  in  the  order  designated 
on  the  envelope.  This  necessitates  finding  and  matching 
the  words. 

Exercise    7. --To    secure    familiarity   with    forms    of 
letters.  Grade  I. 

Material :  Sheets  of  cardboard  containing  large  letters. 

Letters  one  and  two  inches  in  height  are  drawn  on 
cardboard  (6x8  in.). 

The  children  may  cover  the  outlines  with  split  peas 
or  lentils. 

Later  they  may  lay  the  letter  on  the  desk  and  copy 
the  outline. 

Finally,  they  may  copy  words  in  the  same  way  from  a 
slip  of  paper,  or  from  the  board. 

Exercise  8.  —  Sentence-building.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material:  Written  or  printed  sentences  cut  into  sepa- 
rate words,  envelopes. 

On  the  outside  of  envelopes  write  or  print  five  or  six 
sentences.  Write  or  print  five  or  six  copies  of  the 

3 


34  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

same  sentences,  cut  up  into  separate  words,  and  place 
in  the  envelope.  The  children  find  the  words  of  the 
sentences  and  place  them  on  the  desk  in  the  order 
indicated  on  the  outside  of  the  envelope. 

Exercise  9.  —  Drill  in  recognizing  words. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 
Material :  Scraps  from  newspapers  or  magazines. 

Pupils  mark  words  which  they  can  recognize  and 
name. 

After  teaching  a  word  or  letter,  give  the  children  a 
page  of  an  old  magazine  or  book,  or  a  bit  of  newspaper, 
and  let  them  draw  a  line  through  the  word  or  letter, 
wherever  they  may  find  it. 

Exercise  10.  —  Finding  words  in  unfamiliar  pages. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 
Material:  Scraps  from  magazines. 

Let  the  children  hunt  in  the  pages  of  magazines,  etc., 
for  words  of  one  letter,  two  letters,  three  letters,  etc., 
and  cross  them  when  found.  Let  them  mark  all  known 
words  which  they  find  on  the  paper  given  to  them. 

Let  them  hunt  for  words  beginning  with  capitals,  or 
for  words  beginning  with  certain  letters,  or  for  words 
whose  initial  letters  follow  in  the  order  of  the  alphabet, 
or  for  words  that  end  in  a  certain  letter. 

Exercise  n.  —  Copying  sentences. 

Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

Material:  Sentences  written  upon  the  blackboard, 
printed  slips;  hectograph. 


LANGUAGE,    SPELLING,    READING        35 

The  children  may  copy  maxims,  or  poetry  from  the 
blackboard,  or  better,  from  printed  slips  on  the  desk. 
The  hectograph  may  be  used  in  writing  the  slips. 

Exercise  12.  —  Assorting  words.        Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

Material :  Printed  pages  mounted  upon  cardboard, 
cut  into  separate  words. 

Paste  leaves  of  worn-out  books  on  this  cardboard  or 
stiff  paper  and  cut  the  sheet  into  words.  Give  each 
child  a  generous  handful.  He  may  separate  words  of 
two  letters  from  those  of  three,  four,  or  five.  Or  he 
may  place  together  words  of  two  letters,  those  of  three 
letters,  etc. 

Children  may  select  words  beginning  or  ending  with 
a  certain  letter  of  the  alphabet,  or  words  like  those 
written  on  the  board.  Later  in  the  year  the  children 
can  tell  by  sight  or  sound  most  of  the  words,  and 
may  place  known  words  at  one  side  of  the  desk,  and 
unknown  at  the  other  side. 

Exercise    13.  —  Word-building.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material :  The  alphabet,  in  separate  letters  on 
cardboard. 

Procure    from   the     printer,   cards   containing   many 
copies  of  the  alphabet.     He  will  cut  them  up,  if  pre- 
ferred.    Provide   an  envelope  for  each  child,  and 
place  ten  sets  of  letters  in  each  envelope.      On    s 
the  outside  of  each   envelope    place    a   combina-    w 
tion  of  letters  occurring  very  frequently  in  words ;    th 
e.  g.,  ing.     Underneath  these  letters  place  conso-    "• 
nants.     The  child  finds  the  letters  designated  and 
those   required    to   complete    the   words   of   the   same 


36  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

''family,"  and  places  them   on  his  desk  in  the  order 
indicated  on  the  envelope. 

Exercise    14.  —  Making  lists  of  words.      Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material :  Words  containing  certain  sounds. 

Print  five  vowels  with  a  pen,  on  the  outside  of  strong 
envelopes.  Make  on  the  hectograph  five  lists  of  short 
words,  ten  words  in  each  list.  Each  list  should  contain 
words  having  the  same  vowel  sound ;  for  example,  cat, 
fat,  man,  can,  ran,  rat,  hat,  that,  cap,  trap,  bell,  sell,  tell, 
well,  fed,  bed,  red,  Ned,  pet,  wet,  etc. 

Cut  up  the  lists  into  single  words,  and  place  words 
of  all  the  lists  in  each  envelope.  Place  on  the  board 
the  five  vowels  and  call  the  attention  of  the  children  to 
"  a,"  giving  the  sound.  Ask  them  to  find  all  the  words 
in  their  envelopes  containing  that  sound,  and  place 
them  in  a  row  on  the  desk.  Proceed  in  the  same  way 
with  each  of  the  other  vowels. 

It  will  be  necessary  to  work  with  the  children  for  a  few 
lessons  before  giving  them  this  exercise  as  busy  work. 

Exercise    15.  —  Like  Exercise  14.  Grades  i.  and  H. 

A  second  set  of  envelopes  may  be  prepared  contain- 
ing combinations  of  letters  frequently  found  in  words  — 
namely,  ship,  dish,  wish,  shed,  shut,  shot,  sheep,  shell, 
fish,  —  words"  containing  the  letters  oa,  ow,  etc.  This 
exercise  may  be  given  after  the  children  have  made  some 
progress  in  phonics. 

Exercise  16. — Arranging  letters  of  the  alphabet. 

Grade  I. 
Material:  Boxes  of  letters. 

From  his  box  containing  the  letters  of  the  alphabet, 
duplicated  ten  times,  the  child  first  puts  all  like  letters 


LANGUAGE,    SPELLING,    READING       37 

together,  repeating  the  names   to   the  teacher,  at   the 
end  of  busy  work  period. 

Next  place  the  letters  in  alphabetical  order.  Then 
he  may  form  short  words  with  these  letters,  having  a 
copy  on  a  slip,  or  on  the  board. 

Exercise  17.  —  Copying  sentences.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material:  Boxes  of  letters. 

Copy  sentences,  with  the  letters,  from  slip  or  board. 
Make  original  sentences  in  the  same  way. 

Note:  Exercises  16-18  should  be  employed  chiefly  at  the 
period  when  the  children  need  practice  in  recognizing 
and  naming  the  letters,  and  while  they  are  fixing  the  order 
of  the  alphabet. 

Exercise  18.  —  Copying  sentences.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material:  Pictures  cut  from  magazines;  written 
sentences. 

Cut  from  books  and  magazines  good  pictures  about 
two  inches  square.  Paste  these  on  school  writing-paper. 
Write  a  few  sentences  about  the  picture.  Let  the 
children  copy  the  sentences. 

Exercise  19.  —  Story-telling  by  the  aid  of  pictures. 

Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

Material:  Pictures  and  words. 

On  the  next  set  of  papers,  place  a  picture  and  a  few 
suggestive  words.  Now  the  children  write  the  story  by 
aid  of  these  words. 

Finally  the  children  construct  a  story  from  the  picture, 
without  any  aid. 


38  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

Variety  in  this  exercise  is  afforded  by  allowing  chil- 
dren to  write  simply  names  of  objects  seen  in  the 
picture. 

Exercise  20.  —  Copying  sentences..  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material:  Printed  sentences. 

Give  children  slips  of  paper  containing  printed  sen- 
tences. Under  the  printed  sentence,  the  child  writes 
the  same  sentence. 

Next  paste  four  or  five  sentences  from  old  First 
Readers  on  a  card.  Give  each  child  a  card.  He  is  to 
write  these  sentences  on  paper  given  to  him. 

Later,  use  books  for  the  same  purpose. 

Exercise  21. — Finding   and    copying   sentences   of  a 
certain  kind.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

Material :  First  Readers. 

During  the  last  few  months  the  children  are  able 
to  find  a  few  "telling"  (declarative)  and  "  asking " 
(interrogative)  sentences,  from  any  First  Reader,  and 
copy  same  on  paper. 

Exercise  22.  —  Silent  reading.  Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

Material :  Books  or  scraps  pasted  upon  cardboard. 

Let  the  children  study  sentences  from  a  card  and, 
after  reading  silently,  copy  on  paper.  Later,  let  them 
Write  the  sentences  from  memory. 

Later  (during  last  five  months  of  first  grade)  the 
children  may  read  books  in  their  seats. 


LANGUAGE,    SPELLING,    READING       39 

Exercise  23. —  School  library. 

Grades  I.,  II.,  and  III. 

Material:  Collection  of  picture-books. 

Have  a  collection  of  picture-books  which  the  children 
may  take  when  other  work  is  finished,  or  at  the  teacher's 

pleasure. 

• 

Exercise  24.  —  Make   lists  of  words,   following  direc- 
tions. Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material:  Boxes  of  letters. 

With  letters  the  child  makes  the  words  of  the  spelling 
lesson  which  have  been  written  on  the  board. 

Later,  he  makes  with  letters  lists  containing  names  of 
ten  birds,  ten  trees,  etc. 

After  this  exercise  with  separate  letters,  the  child 
is  better  able  to  do  the  same  thing  with  pencil  and 
paper. 

Exercise  25.  —  Filling  blanks.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material:  Prepared  sentences. 

Write    on    slips    of    paper   easy   sentences,    leaving 

blanks;    namely,  "I  see  a dog."     Let  each  child 

have   a   few  slips,  and    copy  the   sentences    on   paper, 
filling  in  the  blank. 

Exercise  26.  —  Copying  sentences.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material:  Slips  from  old  writing-books. 

If  possible,  procure,  from  firms  publishing  writing- 
books,  slips  containing  letters  of  alphabet,  capital  and 


4o  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

small.     These  may  be  hectographed  by  teacher  if  they 
cannot  be  otherwise  obtained. 

The  children  use  these  as  a  copy  at  the  desk. 


Exercise  27.  —  Original  sentences.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Material:  Paper  and  pencil. 

Place  on  the  board  the  name  of  some  interesting 
object,  as  "  doll."  The  children  write  as  many  sen- 
tences as  they  can  about  the  object. 

Exercise  28.  —  Preparing  for  oral  spelling. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 
Material:  Paper  and  pencil. 

The  children  select  three  words  from  the  reading- 
book,  and  make  a  neat  column,  by  repeating  these 
words  a  certain  number  of  times  on  paper. 

Later  in  the  day  these  papers  are  collected,  and  the 
children  have  a  lesson  in  oral  spelling.  Each  child 
spells  the  three  words  that  are  found  on  his  paper. 
The  pupils  who  fail  take  their  papers  and  study  again. 

This  exercise  is  practically  free  from  the  objection 
used  against  oral  spelling,  —  that  the  children  are 
obliged  to  listen  to  incorrect  spelling. 

Exercise  29.  —  Matching  words,  an  aid  in  making  the 
transition  from  script  to  print.  Grade  I. 

Material:  As  each  word  is  taught  from  the  board, 
make  from  twenty-five  to  thirty  copies  of  it,  both 
in  script  and  print.  Use  black  ink  for  the  script  and 


LANGUAGE,    SPELLING,    READING       41 

red  ink  for  the  printed  form.  Place  the  script  and 
printed  forms  of  the  several  words  in  boxes  or 
envelopes,  ready  for  distribution. 

Direction :  Use  this  material  for  busy  work,  preparatory 
to  the  transition  from  board  to  chart,  or  from  board 
to  books. 


V. 

LANGUAGE,   SPELLING,   AND    READING 

(  Continued^ 

Exercises  to  be  used  chiefly  in  Grades  II.  and  III. 

Exercise  i.  —  Spelling  charts. 

Make  spelling  charts  of  lists  of  words.  Charts  may 
be  separated  into  those  of  words  with  "  short  a,"  "  long 
a,"  etc.  Charts  may  be  made  of  large  sheets  of  heavy 
manila  paper,  the  words  written  with  a  rubber  pen, 
large  enough  to  be  seen  across  the  school-room.  Each 
child  should  be  provided  with  a  box  of  letters.  Let 
children  form  words  from  chart  one  day ;  the  next  day 
reproduce  as  many  as  possible  from  memory.  Later 
in  the  year,  words  from  reading-book  may  be  utilized, 
any  given  sound  being  the  basis  of  work. 

Exercise  2.  —  Stories  from  pictures. 

Pictures  may  be  made  useful,  if  they  are  cut  out  and 
mounted.  Each  child  has  a  picture  and  some  letters. 
He  is  to  study  the  picture  carefully,  then  place  it  at  the 
top  of  his  desk,  and  make  a  sentence  or  sentences  about 
it  with  his  letters. 

Exercise  3.  —  Language  cards. 

A  set  of  language  cards,  each  having  a  picture  with  a 
story  on  one  side,  may  be  used  as  follows :  — 

The  story  is  cut  from  the  picture,  and  each  sentence 
cut  up  into  words  or  phrases.  The  original  story, 


LANGUAGE,   SPELLING,    READING        43 

written  on  heavy  paper  or  cardboard,  is  put  into  an 
envelope  with  the  picture  and  cut-up  sentences.  The 
children  are  to  arrange  the  sentences.  Later  in  the 
year,  the  pictures  alone  (without  the  sentences),  and 
others  collected  for  the  purpose,  are  given  out  with 
boxes  of  letters,  and  simple  stones  about  the  pictures 
are  made  by  children. 

Exercise  4.  —  Lists  of  words. 

Use  boxes  of  letters,  or  write  the  lists. 

1.  Lists  of  hard  words  are  made. 

2.  Lists  of  words  beginning   with  certain    letter  or 
sound. 

3.  Lists  of  words  containing  a  certain  letter  or  sound. 

4.  Lists  of  words  having  a  given  ending. 

5.  Words  of  the  special  reading  lesson. 

6.  Sentences  which  tell  something. 

7.  Sentences  which  ask  questions. 

Exercise  5.  —  Copying  or  building  phonic  lists. 

Class  to  write  lists  of  words,  building  from  certain 
combinations,  as 

at  ate 

that         plate 
flat          slate 

Pupils  to  write  lists  of  words  (a  definite  number,  as  ten 
or  twenty)  beginning  with  a  given  letter  or  letters,  as, 
b,  g,  v,  wh,  th;  or  words  having  a  given  combination 
of  letters  within  the  word,  as,  ai,  ea,  ie,  owy  oa ;  or 
words  which  end  with  silent  e,  or  t,  or  ing ;  or  words 
which  have  a  double  consonant  or  vowel. 


44  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

Exercise  6.  —  "  Catch  words." 

Children  to  write  lists  of  catch  words ;  that  is,  words 
with  silent  letters,  as  thought.  The  ugh  does  not  speak, 
and  must  be  "  caught "  and  put  into  the  word,  else  it 
"  catches "  the  children  when  spelling. 

Exercise  7.  —  Lists  of  words  containing  a  given  num- 
ber of  letters. 

Class  to  write  columns  of  words  containing  a  certain 
number  of  letters  or  syllables. 

Exercise  8. — Words  in  sentences. 

The  first  part  of  the  school  year,  words  printed  or 
written  on  cards  may  be  given  to  the  pupils. 


Each  child  studies  the  words  on  his  cards,  then  writes 
them  on  paper.  Later,  the  children  may  put  these 
words  into  sentences. 

Exercise  9.  —  Words  from  reading  lesson. 

After  the  words  at  the  head  of  the  lesson  in  the  Reader 
have  been  sounded  and  spelled,  pupils  may  look  for 
them  in  the  story,  and  make  lists,  putting  number  of 
paragraph  in  which  each  is  found  over  the  word ;  for 
example,  —  45 

loved          children 

8  3 

board  asked 

5  7 

course  said 


LANGUAGE,    SPELLING,    READING       45 

Exercise  10.  —  Phonic  lists  enclosed  in  a  frame. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  school  year,  after  a  sound  drill, 
each  child  is  given  a  cardboard  oblong,  2  by  4  inches. 
He  is  to  draw  around  it,  and  in  the  enclosed  space 
write  all  the  words  he  can  find  in  his  Reader  containing 
the  sound  or  sounds  just  reviewed. 

Exercise  1 1 .  —  Use  of  clippings. 

Columns  from  a  magazine  or  from  any  other  good 
reading  matter  may  be  distributed  to  class,  and  childre'n 
be  required  to  underline  known  words,  copying  the 
same  on  strips  of  paper,  if  time  permit. 

Exercise  12.  —  Copying  selections. 

Children  may  copy  certain  paragraphs  from  the  Reader 
after  words  have  been  spelled,  attention  being  given  to 
capitals  and  punctuation  as  well  as  spelling. 

Exercise  13.  —  Sentences  from  Reader. 

The  teacher  may  select  ten  or  more  hard  words  from 
the  reading  lesson.  Have  the  children  copy  the  sen- 
tences containing  these  words  from  the  Reader,  and 
later  have  them  read  the  sentences  from  the  paper  in- 
stead of  the  book.  This  aids  transition  from  print  to 
script,  and  emphasizes  the  importance  of  using  the 
exact  words  of  the  text. 

Exercise  14.  —  Selections  for  children's  blank  books. 

Children  may  copy  poems  in  blank  books.  The 
poems  may  be  those  which  have  been  learned  from 
month  to  month,  expressing  the  month's  nature  work 
or  that  of  the  season. 


46  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

• 
Exercise  15.  —  Difficult  words. 

Selections  may  be  copied,  then  hard  words  written 
in  columns  underneath,  each  child  choosing  his  own 
words. 

Exercise  16.  —  Punctuation. 

Sentences  from  special  page  or  pages  of  the  Reader 
may  be  copied  the  first  of  the  year. 

1.  Those  which   tell   something,   being   careful    how 
they  begin  and  end.     (Capitals  and  periods.) 

2.  Those  which  ask    questions,   being   careful    how 
they  begin  and  end.     (Capitals  and  interrogation  points.) 

3.  Sentences  which  contain  names  of  persons. 

Exercise  17.  —  Material  for  spelling. 

Sentences  on  work  of  the  season  copied  and  used  for 
spelling  lesson. 

Exercise  18.  —  Mottoes. 

Maxims  and  mottoes  copied  by  class. 
See  pages  134-139. 

Exercise  19.  —  Pilgrim  book. 

In  November  or  December,  as  a  development  of  the 
talks  about  Thanksgiving  and  Forefathers'  Day,  a  form 
of  busy  work  which  has  delighted  some  little  people  is 
making  "  The  Pilgrim  Book."  Material  for  the  class : 
blank  books,  pictures,  scissors,  paste,  sticks.  The 
teacher  should  show,  on  charts  or  blackboard,  just 
how  she  wishes  each  page  of  blank  book  to  be  arranged. 
The  work  may  be  divided  into  several  lessons,  leading 
up  to  the  finished  result. 


LANGUAGE,   SPELLING,    READING       47 

Such  books  may  be  made  in  connection  with  other 
subjects  and  seasons,  —  as,  Thanksgiving,  June,  Occupa- 
tions, Animals,  Flowers. 


Exercise  20.  —  Original  sentences. 

Give  each  child  a  definite  number  of  words  on  a 
card.  Pupil  may  copy  and  put  given  words  into 
sentences. 

Exercise  21. —  Questions  and  answers. 

The  teacher  may  write  on  board  questions  about  the 
reading-lesson,  the  answers  to  which  will  form  a  short 
connected  story.  Children  write  the  answers.  Pupils 
are  expected  to  pay  attention  to  margin,  punctuation, 
capitals,  and  spelling,  and  also  to  put  title  at  the 
beginning. 

Exercise  22. — Words  in  sentences. 

Lists  of  words  are  written  by  teacher  on  blackboard 
or  chart.  Pupils  make  sentences  containing  words  in 
the  lists.  A  help  to  spelling  and  language  in  second 
half  of  year. 

Exercise  23.  —  Use  of  pictures. 

Children  may  write  stories  from  large  picture  hung 
before  the  class,  hints  having  been  written  on  black- 
board ;  use  small  pictures  at  desks  in  the  same  way. 

Descriptions  of  flowers,  fruits,  animals,  or  birds,  writ- 
ten and  studied ;  sometimes  with  topics  on  the  board, 
other  times  without. 


48  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

Exercise  24.  —  Mounted  pictures  and  words. 

Make  a  collection  of  small  pictures  selected  from 
magazines,  school  papers,  old  books,  or  any  other 
source.  Suitable  boxes  may  be  collected  by  the  chil- 
dren. The  pictures  must  be  mounted,  and  a  box  for 
each  child  is  a  necessity.  Into  each  box  are  put  from 
ten  to  twenty  mounted  pictures,  and  five  slips  of  card- 
board for  each  picture,  each  slip  having  the  name  of 
the  picture  on  it.  Every  slip,  picture,  and  box  is 
numbered,  the  number  of  slip  and  picture  correspond- 
ing to  the  number  of  box  in  which  they  belong.  If 
either  one  is  found  out  of  its  place,  it  may,  in  this 
way,  easily  be  returned  to  its  proper  box.  The  boxes 
have  names  typical  of  the  pictures  within.  One  may 
be  an  "  Indian  box,"  another  a  "  plaything  box,"  an- 
other a  "  vegetable  box,"  and  so  on.  When  the  boxes 
are  given  to  the  class,  each  child  arranges  his  pictures 
on  his  desk,  and  puts  the  five  slips  which  tell  the  name 
of  a  picture  under  the  picture  to  which  they  belong. 

Exercise  25.  —  Library. 

A  school  library  of  the  simplest  sort  may  be  made 
available  even  to  children  in  the  primary  schools,  so 
that  they  may  be  accustomed  to  the  independent  use 
of  books.  The  tendency  of  the  school  is  to  direct  class 
work  and  ignore  individual  choice.  This  may  be  cor- 
rected by  the  use  of  a  library. 

Collect  books  from  every  possible  source :  picture- 
books  or  story-books  which  the  children  may  lend  for 
the  purpose,  or  which  are  contributed  from  the  garret 
collections  of  the  neighborhood  ;  old  magazines;  partial 
sets  of  supplementary  reading  books ;  old  text-books. 


LANGUAGE,   SPELLING,    READING        49 

Place  these  upon  a  table  or  a  shelf  within  reach  of  the 
children.  If  a  table  is  used,  let  a  group  gather  about 
it  and  use  the  books  at  pleasure  during  a  prescribed 
period.  Or,  let  the  children  who  complete  their  work 
before  the  others,  have  this  opportunity  to  read;  and 
lest  the  slower  ones  be  forgotten,  assign  a  special  period 
when  they  may  use  the  books  instead  of  doing  other 
work.  Encourage  the  children  to  tell  what  they  enjoy 
in  a  book,  to  describe  the  pictures  which  they  have  seen, 
or  to  relate  the  stories  which  they  have  read.  In  some 
cases,  read  to  trie  children  from  story-books  which  they 
bring,  so  that  they  may  acquire  the  notion  that  their 
lessons  in  reading  are  intended  to  develop  the  power 
to  use  books  for  themselves. 

By  this  means,  even  with  a  meagre  provision  for  read- 
ing, the  library  may  be  made  a  very  valuable  part  of  the 
equipment  of  the  school. 


VI. 

A    SERIES    OF    EXERCISES    IN    PHONICS 
AND    SPELLING 

PREPARED  BY 

A.  B.  B. 

Grades  II.  and  III. 

THE  following  series  of  exercises  suggest  phases  of  word 
study  which  may  profitably  employ  pupils  in  connection  with 
phonics  or  spelling.  Key  words  are  provided  from  which 
the  children,  by  prefixing  initial  letters,  may  make  new  words 
having  the  same  final  sound.  The  lists  may  be  read  after- 
ward to  the  class,  and  the  new  words  used  in  sentences, 
spelled  orally,  or  written  from  dictation.  The  exercises  have 
been  carefully  prepared  by  one  who  has  made  a  thoughtful 
study  of  phonics  with  her  own  classes.  They  will  be  found 
to  contain  many  fundamental  combinations  which  should  be- 
come familiar  to  the  children. 

In  other  exercises  the  addition  of  the  silent  e,  or  of  the 
various  suffixes,  enables  the  children  to  spell  the  common 
derivatives  and  to  recognize  the  law  which  governs  the  spell- 
ing. The  meaning  of  the  derivative  is  taught  at  the  same 
time,  and  the  pupils  are  thus  helped  to  consider  the  relations 
of  words  which  are  derived  from  the  same  root.  This  prac- 
tice will  prove  very  helpful  when  the  knowledge  is  applied 
in  reading.  —  ED. 


PHONICS    AND    SPELLING  51 

BOARD    OR    CHART    WORK     (A) 

GUIDE 
Key  Words.  Initial  Letters. 

1.  and  l.     b,  gr,  h,  1,  s,  st. 

2.  end  2.     b,  1,  t,  s,  sp,  r,  w,  bl. 

CLASS    EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  columns. 

Result:     1.     and  hand 

band  land 

grand  sand 

stand 

2.     end  tend 

bend  send 

lend  spend 

rend  wend 
blend 

SUPPLEMENTARY   EXERCISES     (B) 

GUIDE 
Key  Words.  Initial  Letters. 

1.  eat  l.  b,  h,  s,  tr,  wh,  n,  m. 

2.  each  2.  b,  p,  r,  t,  pr. 

3.  ear  3.  n,  t,  r,  f,  h,  d,  dr,  sh,  sp,  y. 

4.  oil  4.  b,  c,  t,  s,  sp. 

5.  all  5.  b,  c,  f,  t,  w,  sm,  h,  st. 

6.  ill  6.  b,  h,  f,  s,  t,  st,  g,  w,  w,  p, 

sp,  dr,  qu,  gr,  tr. 

7.  ink  7.     dr,  br,  r,  ch,  s,  w,  th,  1. 

Suggestions :  — 

i.   At  the  close  of  a  busy  work  period,  let  the  class 
volunteer  to  pronounce  and  spell  each  word  in  any  list. 


'I/I/  I  W 


52  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

2.  During  some  future  busy  work  period,  have  the 
lists  copied  from  the  board  or  chart  into  the  blank 
books  reserved  for  spelling. 

BOARD   OK   CHART    WORK     (C) 

GUIDE 
Key  Words.  Final  Letters. 

1.  thin  1.  k,  g. 

2.  sin  2.  k,  g,  ge. 

3.  chin  3.  k. 

4.  ban  4.  k,  g,  d. 

5.  sun  5.  k,  g. 

CLASS   EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  columns. 
Result  :     1.     thin,  think,  thing. 

2.  sin,  sink,  sing,  singe. 

3.  chin,  chink. 

4.  ban,  bank,  bang,  band. 

5.  sun,  sunk,  sung. 

SUPPLEMENTARY   EXERCISES     (JD) 
GUIDE 

Key  Words.  Final  e  added. 

1.  slop  1.     slope 

2.  hop  2. 

3.  rod  3. 

4.  slid  4. 

5.  din  5. 

6.  twin  6. 

7.  trip  7. 

8.  snip  8. 


PHONICS    AND    SPELLING  53 


Key  Words. 

Final  e  added. 

9.     fin 

9. 

10.     us 

10. 

11.     at 

11. 

12.     bit 

12. 

13.     tub 

13. 

14.     cub 

14. 

15.     cut 

15. 

16.     not 

16. 

17.     tun 

17. 

18.     ton 

18. 

19.     shad 

19. 

20.     rob 

20. 

MODIFIED    VOWELS 

<*) 

GUIDE 

1.     cot 

1. 

coat 

2.     rod 

2. 

3.     am 

3. 

aim 

4.     ran 

4. 

5.     pan 

5. 

6.     far 

6. 

fair 

7.     star 

7. 

8.     bar 

8. 

bear 

9.     tar 

9. 

10.     car 

10. 

care 

11.     bar 

11. 

12.     far 

12. 

13.     slop 

13. 

sloop 

M.     stop 

14. 

15.     shot 

15. 

16.     hot 

16. 

17.     cot 

17. 

54  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

18.  drop  18. 

19.  crop  19.     croup 

20.  sop  20. 

BOARD    OR    CHART    WORK     (F) 

GUIDE 

Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  bake  1.  -r 

2.  make  2.  -r 

3.  talk  3.  -er 

4.  walk  4.  -er 

5.  buy  5.  -er 

6.  dream  6.  -er 

7.  work  7.  -er 

8.  sleep  8.  -er 

9.  creep  9.  -er 

10.  preach  10.  -er 

11.  sell  11.  -er 

12.  steam  12.  -er 

13.  wait  13.  -er 

14.  read  14.  -er 

15.  trade  15.  -r 

16.  ride  16.  -r 

BUSY    WORK    EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  the 
action  word,  the  name  word. 

Suggestions :  — 

1.  At  the  close   of  a  busy  work  period  have  each 
word  pronounced,  spelled,  and  used  in  sentence-building. 

2.  Have  these  words  copied    from   board    or   chart 
lists,  during  a  future  busy  work  period,  into  the  blank 
books  reserved  for  spelling. 


PHONICS    AND    SPELLING  55 

SUPPLEMENTARY   EXERCISES     (G) 

GUIDE 

Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  run  1.  n-er 

2.  gun  2.  n-er 

3.  spin  3.  n-er 

4.  win  4.  n-er 

5.  sin  5.  n-er 

6.  trim  6.  m-er 

7.  hum  7.  m-er 

8.  drum  8.  m-er 

9.  rob  9.  b-er 

10.  clip  10.  p-er 

11.  ship  11.  p-er 

12.  chop  12.  p-er 

13.  hop  13.  p-er 

14.  stop  14.  p-er 

15.  cut  15.  t-er 

16.  shut  16.  t-er 

17.  fit  17.  t-er 

18.  wrap  18.  p-er 

CLASS   EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  a  list 
of  action  words,  a  list  of  name  words.  Call  attention  to 
the  "  doubling  "  of  the  final  consonant  before  er  can  be 
added. 

Suggestions :  — 

1.  Have  each  word  in  a  list  pronounced,  spelled,  and 
used  for  sentence-building. 

2.  Have  the  lists  copied,  during  a  future  busy  work 
exercise,  into  the  blank  books  reserved  for  spelling. 


PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


BOARD    OR    CHART   WORK     (Jff) 
GUIDE 

Key 

Words. 

Suffix. 

l. 

run 

1. 

n-ing 

2. 

sun 

2. 

n-ing 

3. 

gun 

3. 

n-ing 

4. 

pin 

4. 

n-ing 

5. 

sin 

5. 

n-ing 

6. 

win 

6. 

n-ing 

7. 

trim 

7. 

m-ing 

8. 

hum 

8. 

m-ing 

9. 

drum 

9. 

m-ing 

10. 

slam 

10. 

m-ing 

11. 

stop 

11. 

p-ing 

12. 

chop 

12. 

p-ing 

13. 

hop 

13. 

p-ing 

14. 

slip 

14. 

p-ing 

15. 

whip 

15. 

p-ing 

16. 

skip 

16. 

p-ing 

17. 

ship 

17. 

p-ing 

18. 

trip 

18. 

p-ing 

19. 

drip 

19. 

p-ing 

20. 

get 

20. 

t-ing 

21. 

fret 

21. 

t-ing 

22. 

pat 

22. 

t-ing 

23. 

cut 

23. 

t-ing 

24. 

sit 

24. 

t-ing 

CLASS   EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  the  two 
forms  of  the  action  word.  Call  attention  to  the  "  doub- 
ling "  of  the  final  consonant  before  ing  can  be  added. 


PHONICS    AND    SPELLING  57 

Suggestions :  — 

1.  Have  the  words  in  each  list  pronounced,  spelled, 
and  used  in  sentence-building. 

2.  Have  each  list  copied  from  the  board  or  chart 
into  the  blank  books  reserved  for  spelling. 

BOARD   OR   CHART   WORK     (1) 

GUIDE 
Key   Words.  Suffix. 

1.  trim  1.  m-ed 

2.  hum  2.  m-ed 

3.  slam  3.  m-ed 

4.  drum  4.  m-ed 

5.  drag  5.  g-ed 

6.  rig  6.  g-ed 

7.  bag  7.  g-ed 

8.  peg  8.  g-ed 

Change  of  Pronunciation 

9.  slip  9.     p-ed 

10.  chip  10.  p-ed 

11.  trip  11.  p-ed 

12.  stop  12.  p-ed 

13.  chop  13.  p-ed 

14.  drip  14.  p-ed 

15.  whip  15.  p-ed 

16.  clip  16.  p-ed 

Change  of  Pronunciation 

17.  fret  17.     t-ed 

18.  pet  18.     t-ed 

19.  trot  19.     t-ed 

20.  pat  20.     t-ed 


58  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

CLASS   EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  the 
present  and  the  past  form  of  the  action  word, 
ed-t  ed-ed 

Suggestions :  — 

1.  Have  each  word  in  a  list  pronounced,  spelled,  and 
used  in  sentence-building. 

2.  Have  each  list  copied  from  the  board  or  chart  into 
the  blank  books  reserved  for  spelling. 

3.  Call  attention  to  the  "  doubling  "  of  the  final  con- 
sonant before  ed  can  be  added. 

BOARD    OR    CHART   WORK     (J) 

GUIDE 
Key   Words.  Suffix. 

1.  come  l.  com-ing 

2.  have  2.  hav-ing 

3.  save  3.  sav-ing 

4.  live  4.  -ing 

5.  give  5.  -ing 

6.  smile  6.  -ing 

7.  twine  7.  -ing 

8.  shine  8.  -ing 

9.  dine  9.  dining 

10.  dive  10.  -ing 

11.  drive  11.  -ing 

12.  chase  12.  -ing 

13.  trace  13.  -ing 

14.  lace  14.  -ing 

15.  slide  15.  -ing 

16.  ride  16.  -ing 


PHONICS    AND    SPELLING  59 

Key  Words.  Suffix. 

17.  hide  17.  -ing 

18.  skate  18.  -ing 

19.  make  19.  -ing 

20.  wake  20.  -ing 

21.  shake  21.  -ing 

22.  bake  22.  -ing 

23.  quake  23.  -ing 

CLASS   EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  the 
action  words  and  their  present  participles,  by  dropping 
the  final  e  of  the  "  stem  "  and  adding  ing. 

Suggestions :  — 

1.  Use  as  an  oral  spelling  lesson. 

2.  Write  the  lists  upon  the  board  and   require  the 
class  to  copy  them  into  the  blank  books. 

BOARD    OR    CHART   WORK     (K.) 

GUIDE 
Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  storm  1.  storm-y 

2.  rain  2.  rain-y 

3.  snow  3.  -y 

4.  might  4.  -y 

5.  frost  5.  -y 

6.  wind  6.  -y 

7.  moss  7.  -y 

8.  gloss  8.  -y 

9.  dress  9.  -y 

10.  flesh  10.     -y 

11.  thorn  11.     -y 


60  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

Key  Words.  Suffix. 

12.  dust  12.  -y 

13.  gust  13.  -y 

14.  slush  14.  -y 

15.  trust  15.  -y 

16.  grain  16.  -y 

17.  grass  17.  -y 

18.  thirst  18.  -y 

19.  health  19.  -y    • 

20.  wealth  20.  -y 

21.  hair  21.  -y 

Change  of  Spelling 

22.  juice  22.     -y 

Omit  the  final  e  before  adding  y  to  the  "  stem." 

CLASS   EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  the 
name  word  and  the  descriptive  word,  by  addingjj/  to  the 
stem. 

Suggestions :  — 

1.  Use  the  list  for  an  oral   spelling  lesson  and  for 
language. 

2.  Write  the  lists  upon  the  board  for  the  class  to 
copy  into  the  blank  books. 

BOARD    OR    CHART   WORK     (L) 

GUIDE 

Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  pretty  1.  pretti-ly 

2.  merry  2.  merri-ly 

3.  happy  3.  -ly 


PHONICS    AND    SPELLING  61 

Key  Words.  Suffix. 

4.  cheery  4.  -ly 

5.  dreary  5.  -ly 

6.  weary  6.  -ly 

7.  stormy  7.  -ly 

8.  mighty  8.  -ly 

9.  worthy  9.  -ly 

CLASS    EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  de- 
scriptive words  and  words  expressing  manner. 

Suggestions :  — 

1.  Use  for  an  oral  spelling  and  language  lesson. 

2.  Write  the  lists  upon  the  board  for  the  class  to 
copy  into  the  blank  books. 

BOARD    OR    CHART   WORK     (Jf) 
GUIDE 

Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  pony  1.  poni-es 

2.  penny  2.  penni-es 

3.  daisy  3.  -es 

4.  pansy  4.  -es 

5.  baby  5.  -es 

6.  lady  6.  -es 

7.  berry  7.  -es 

8.  cherry  8.  -es 

9.  ferry  9.  -es 

10.  pussy  10.  -es 

11.  fairy  11.  -es 


62  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


CLASS    EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  the 
form  for  one  and  more  than  one. 

Suggestions :  — 

1.  Use   each   list  for  a  lesson  in  oral  spelling   and 
language. 

2.  Write  the  lists  upon  the  board   for  the  class  to 
copy  into  the  blank  books. 

BOARD    OR    CHART   WORK     (tf) 

GUIDE 
Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  rest  1.  rest-less 

2.  cheer  2.  cheer-less 

3.  help  3.  -less 

4.  truth  4.  -less 

5.  mirth  5.  -less 

6.  worth  6.  -less 

7.  hair  7.  -less 

8.  friend  8.  -less 

9.  mother  9.  -less 

10.  father  10.  -less 

11.  doubt  11.  -less 

12.  rider  12.  -less 

13.  number  13.  -less 

14.  home  14.  -less 

15.  house  15.  -less 

16.  seed*  16.  -less 

17.  thought  17.  -less 

18.  joy  18.  -less 


PHONICS    AND    SPELLING  63 

CLASS    EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  name 
words  and  the  descriptive  words  formed  by  adding  less 
(in  the  sense  of  without)  to  the  stem. 

Suggestions :  — 

1.  Use  the  lists  for  an  oral  spelling  and   language 
lesson. 

2.  Write  the  lists  upon  the  board  for  the  class  to 
copy  into  the  blank  books. 

BOARD    OR    CHART    WORK     (O) 

GUIDE 
Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  truth  1.  truth-fui 

2.  help  2.  help-ful 

3.  cheer  3.  -ful 

4.  mirth  4.  -ful 

5.  rest  5.  -ful 

6.  joy  6.  -ful 

7.  fruit  7.  -ful 

8.  waste  8.  -ful 

9.  boat  9.  -ful 

Change  of  Spelling 
Key  Words.  Siiffix. 

10.  beauty  10.     beauti-ful 

11.  duty  11.  -ful 

12.  mercy  12.  -ful 

CLASS    EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  name 
words  and  descriptive  words  formed  by  adding  ful  (in 
the  sense  of  with  w  full  of)  to  the  stem. 


64  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

Suggestions  :  — 

1.  Use  the  lists  for  oral  spelling  and  language. 

2.  Write  the  lists  upon  the  board  for  the  class  to 
copy  into  the  blank  books. 

BOARD    OK   CHART    WORK     (JP) 

GUIDE 
Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  wood  1.  wood-en 

2.  gold  2.  gold-en 

3.  oak  3.  -en 

4.  leather  4.  ,  -n 

5.  earth  5.  -en 

6.  feather  6,  feather-y 

7.  silver  7.  -y 

8.  leather  8.  -y 

9.  brass  9.  -y 
10.  earth  10.  -y 

CLASS    EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  name 
words  and  the  descriptive  words  derived  from  them  by 
adding  en,  n,  or  y  to  the  stem. 
Suggestions  :  — 

1.  Use  the  lists  for  oral  spelling  and  language. 

2.  Write  the  lists  upon  the    board  for  the  class  to 
copy  into  the  blank  books. 

BOARD    OR    CHART   WORK     (Q) 

GUIDE 
I. 

Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  pink  1.     pink-ish 

2.  yellow-  2.     yellow-ish 


PHONICS    AND    SPELLING  6$ 

Key  Words.  Suffix. 

3.  green  3.  -ish 

4.  brown  4.  -ish 

Change  of  Spelling 

5.  red.  5.     red-dish 

"  Double  "  the  d  before  adding  ish. 

• 

GUIDE 

II. 
Key  Words.  Suffix. 

1.  dark  1.     dark-ness 

2.  white  2.  -ness 

3.  red  3.  -ness 

4.  dim  4.  -ness 

5.  bright  5.  -ness 

6.  polite  6.  -ness 

7.  kind  7.  -ness 

8.  tender  8.  -ness 

Change  of  Spelling 

9.  happy  9.  -iness 
Change  y  to  i  before  adding  ness. 

CLASS    EXERCISE 

Form  with  letters  or  write  in  separate  columns  de- 
scriptive words  and  their  forms  to  denote  diminished 
quality,  by  adding  ish  to  the  stem ;  form  or  write 
descriptive  words  and  the  name  words  derived  from 
them,  by  adding  ness  to  the  stem. 

Suggestions '  — 

1.  Use  the  lists  for  oral  spelling  and  language. 

2.  Write   the   lists   upon  the  board    for  the  class  to 
copy  into  the  blank  books. 

S 


66  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


MISCELLANEOUS    EXERCISES    IN   SPELLING   AND 
WORD    STUDY. 

EXERCISE  i. 

Make  a  list  of  the  common  homonyms,  as,  to,  two ; 
by,  buy.  Direct  the  children  to  use  them  correctly  in 
sentences. 

EXERCISE  2. 

Write  upon  the  blackboard  different  forms  of  the 
same  root  word  to  be  used  in  sentences,  as,  help,  help- 
ful, helping,  helpless,  helped,  helper,  helpfully. 

EXERCISE  3. 

Direct  children  to  copy  from  reading-books  words 
having  certain  endings,  as,  ing,  er,  est ;  words  having 
certain  prefixes  or  suffixes,  as,  un,ful. 

Copy  all  abbreviations  found. 

EXERCISE  4. 

Write  on  the  blackboard  a  list  of  verbs  whose  past 
and  whose  present  participle  are  formed  regularly,  and 
require  class  to  copy  and  complete  list  like  the  model, 
as,— 

add,  added,  adding. 

return, 

ask, 

Note :  The  terms  which  are  used  in  the  directions  to  the 
teacher  are  not  intended  for  the  pupil.  Children  of  these 
grades  will  not  of  course  understand  grammatical  terms. 
They  can,  however,  discover  groups  of  words  having  kindred 
meaning  and  derived  from  the  same  root. 


PHONICS    AND    SPELLING  67 

EXERCISE  5. 

Work  similar  to  the  above  may  be  done  with  adjec- 
tives, the  class  writing  all  forms,  as,  — 

long,         longer,         longest. 

full, 

tall, 

EXERCISE  6. 

Later,  similar  work  may  be  done  with  verbs  having 
final  e,  as,  — 

love,          loved,          loving. 

care, 

move, 

Also  with  nouns  forming  plurals  regularly  and  irreg- 
ularly, as,  - 

sister,  sisters, 

daisy,  daisies, 

donkey,  donkeys. 

With  words  doubling  final  consonant,  as,  — 
plan,  planned,  planning. 

.  hot,  hotter,  hottest. 

EXERCISE  7. 

Distribute  cards  with  such  words  as  felt,  slip,  thus, 
rife,  life ;  have  the  words  formed  with  the  cut  letters ; 
have  the  letters  in  each  word  transposed  to  form  a  new 
word  ;  namely,  left,  lips,  shut,  fire,  file. 

EXERCISE  8. 

Select  some  word,  as  pasture ;  have  words  formed 
from  it  by  selecting  and  transposing  the  letters  in  it. 


68  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

EXERCISE  9. 

Select  and  copy  from  the  reading-books,  words 

(a)  beginning  with  a  certain  letter, 

(b)  ending  with  a  certain  letter, 

(c)  containing  a  specific  number  of  letters, 

(d)  containing  a  specific  number  of  syllables, 

(e)  denoting  the  names  of  fruits, 

(/)  denoting  the  names  of  vegetables, 

(g)    denoting  the  names  of  animals, 

(h)    denoting  the  names  of  people, 

(i)    denoting  the  names  of  places, 

(j)   denoting  facts  about  the  weather,  including  the 

phenomena  of  nature, 
(k)   denoting  number,  quantity,  and  size. 


VII. 
MISS   FULLER'S   PHONIC   DRILL   CHART 

THE  accompanying  drill  chart,  for  practice  in  phonics,  was 
prepared  by  Miss  Sarah  Fuller,  Principal  of  the  Horace  Mann 
School  for  the  Deaf.  It  is  published  by  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co., 
Boston,  whose  courtesy  in  permitting  its  use  is  gratefully 
acknowledged.  For  the  directions  for  using  the  chart,  we 
are  indebted  to  Miss  Fuller. 

DRILL    CHART 


Final  Consonants.     —  m 

-P 

-th 

—X 

-1 

—V 

-t 

|zj 

-b 

-s(j) 

-th 

i     c 

-sh 

-d 

-ng 

—  n 

-f 

-ch 

-s 

1-s 

Initial  Consonants,      m       vtfenptk,  cfth 

s,  c    sh    ch    b    d    g    1    j,  g    z,  x 
s,  z  (zh)    q    r    w    wh    y    h 


Order  of  Vowels. 

U 
0 

a      I 
a 

e      I 
6       u 

a 
ii 

e 
a 

a 
6w 

6 

ii 

01 

To  THE  TEACHER.  — The  pupil  will  read  each  vowel  element  in  combination  with  each 
final  consonant,  and  will  also  read  each  initial  consonant  with  each  vowel  and  final  conso- 
nant; thus,  u  will  be  read  urn,  uv,  utk,  ««,  «/,  etc.,  and,  also,  mum,  muv,  muth,  mun, 
mup,  etc. ,  vuntf  vuv,  vuth,  vun,  vup%  etc. 


70  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

bread 


u'  CUP      j  ou, 


young 


e  bell    I  ea'  brea 
jai,   said 


,  dog     | 


a,    wasp 


^HauS 


a,  fan 


u,  tube    -j  ew, 


few 


o,  do 


u,    rude 


i  ff 


u,  put     -j  oo,  foot 


{  ai, 


curtain 


ow,  cow  -j  ou,  mouth 


oi,  boil   |  oy,  boy 


m 
arm  mat 
—  m  m— 

k               c 
fork  key    arc  cow 
—  k  k  —    —  c  c  — 

b 
tub  boy 
-b  b— 

s  (zh)     z  (zh) 
measure  glazier 

c  Z—  — 

V 

stove  vase 

TT       TT  

f 
cuff  fan 
—  f  f— 

d 
bird  doll 
—  d  d— 

q                 wh 
quill           whip> 
q  —           wh— 

«h 

with  the 

—  en   wi  — 

th 
mouth  thumb 
th  th  

& 
dog  gun 

—  g  s— 

r                y 
rat             yacht 

r-          y- 

n 
fan  nut 

nY| 

s                c 
mouse  sun  face  cent 

1 

ball  leg 
1  i 

w                  h 
wasp             hat 

P 

cup  pin 
-P  P- 

sh 
fish  shell 
-sh  sh- 

f~    ~S 
jug  cage  gill 

j  s  s— 

X 

box 

—  X 

t 
hat  top 
—  t  t— 

ell 
watch  chain 
—ok  ck  — 

z            s 
fez  zinc  nose 
—  z  z  —  —  s 

ng 
ring 
-ng 

PHONIC    CHART  71 

Directions 

Distribute  the  charts,  at  the  same  time  giving  to  each 
child  two  or  three  vowels  written  upon  little  squares 
of  card-board.  All  the  more  common  spellings  of  a 
vowel-sound  should  be  written  under  the  vowel  as  it 
appears  on  the  drill-chart,  as,  — 

a 
ai 
ay 
a-e 

It  will  add  to  the  interest  of  the  lesson  if  care  is  taken 
that  no  two  children  have  the  same  vowels  to  work 
with  ;  at  least  those  seated  near  each  other  should  have 
different  ones. 

Either  mention  or  write  upon  the  blackboard  an 
initial  consonant.  Require  each  child  to  pronounce 
silently  the  syllables  which  result  from  combining  the 
given  consonant  with  one  of  the  vowels  and  every  final. 
(For  example,  if  the  initial  is  m  and  the  vowel  o,  the 
resulting  combinations  would  be  moon,  move,  month, 
moor,  etc.)  As  he  comes  to  a  combination  which  is  a 
vowel  contained  in  his  own  speaking  vocabulary,  let  him 
write  it  down,  spelling  it  as  best  he  can. 

Enough  vowels  should  be  supplied  to  insure  employ- 
ment throughout  the  period,  the  number  differing  with 
the  working  capacity  of  the  individual  child. 

At  the  end  of  the  period  the  teacher  should  call 
for  each  child's  list  and  write  every  common  word  upon 
the  blackboard,  of  course  spelling  it  correctly ;  by  this 
means  each  gets  the  benefit  of  the  labor  of  all. 

Many  consonant  combinations  such  as  sp,  st,  sk,  sm, 
si*  bl,  gr,  pr>  str,  scr,  etc.,  may  be  used  as  initials  or 
finals,  or  both. 


72  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

THE   VOWEL   AND    CONSONANT   CHARTS 

Direct  the  children  to  write  columns  of  words  contain- 
ing (#)  the  same  initials,  or  (£)  the  same  finals,  or  (<:) 
the  same  vowel  sounds  as  the  words  in  any  selected 
group.  It  often  happens  that  a  combination  which 
is  not  by  itself  an  English  word  is  nevertheless  a 
syllable  of  some  well-known  word.  Pupils  should  be 
encouraged  to  notice  such  syllables  and  to  write  the 
words  of  which  they  are  a  part. 

Call  for  the  lists  at  the  end  of  the  period,  but  only 
uncommon  or  unfamiliar  words  need  be  written  upon 
the  board.  The  exercise  should  be  progressive ;  com- 
mon words  ought  gradually  to  be  ruled  out,  and  the 
children  taught  to  spend  much  thought  in  adding  to 
their  lists  words  which  they  have  heard  other  people 
use. 

Note :  The  fear  which  some  teachers  feel  that  such  exercises 
will  react  unfavorably  upon  the  spelling  is  not  realized  in 
practice. 

SLR 


NUMBER' 


VIII. 

NUMBER  WORK   FOR   FIRST-GRADE   PUPILS 

I. 

MEASURING  AND  CUTTING 

1.  Make  measures  eight  or  ten  inches  long  and  one 
inch  wide,  from  cardboard.     Mark  off  only  inch  lengths. 
Give  each  child  a  measure  and  slips  of  paper  cut  from 
any  paper  furnished  for  school  use.     The  children  may 
cut    one-inch     lengths,    two-inch     lengths,     three-inch 
lengths,    etc.,    as    many   of  each   as   the   teacher   may 
indicate.  Grade  I. 

2.  Early  in  the  year  the  children  cut  writing  paper 
on  the  lines. 

Later,  cut  in  the  same  way  and  then  cut  each  strip 
into  halves.  When  they  can  do  this  readily,  ask  them 
to  cut  one  whole  strip,  then  cut  the  next  strip  into 
halves  and  place  under  the  whole  strip,  the  next  into 
fourths,  the  next  into  eighths.  Try  the  same  kind  of 
cutting  with  squares,  circles,  triangles,  and  oblongs. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 

3.  Give  each  child  a  four-inch  square,  also  a  measure, 
and  ask  him  to  mark  and  cut  into  one-inch  squares. 

Grade  I. 

4.  During   May  and   June   let   the  first   class  mark 
squares  of  tagstock  into  inch  squares.     Then  in  each 
one  of  these  squares  they  draw  a  number  picture.     Let 
them   cut   these   inch   squares,  and   let   these  number 


76  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

pictures  be  sorted  by  the  children  who  enter  the  next 
school  year.  Grade  I. 

5.  A  box  of  assorted  sticks  (eighteen  cents  a  box) 
are  useful  in  teaching  measurements.  Make  gardens  a 
given  number  of  inches  square,  and  place  sticks  of  dif- 
ferent lengths  inside  to  represent  the  height  of  the 
plants  in  that  garden. 

All  these  exercises  under  measuring  and  cutting  are 
very  valuable  and  can  be  used  throughout  the  year. 

Cutting  Exercise  to  increase  Perceptions  of  Form 
and  Size 

(This  exercise  may  be  taken  the  second  month  of  first 
primary  year  and  continued  several  months,  by  children 
who  have  received  full  kindergarten  training.) 

Cut  (by  measure)  a  square  of  one  inch  side,  then 
a  two-inch  square,  a  three-inch  square,  etc.  Cut  the 
same  without  measure.  Vary  by  cutting  oblongs,  one 
inch  by  two  inches,  one  inch  by  three  inches,  two  inches 
by  three  inches,  etc.  Grades  I.  and  n. 

Cut  forms  into  halves,  thirds,  fourths,  etc.          Grade  I. 

Cut  a  rectangle.  Cut  another  twice  as  large,  another 
three  times  as  large  as  the  first,  etc. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 

Cut  a  rectangle.  Cut  another  one-half,  one-third,  or 
one-fourth  as  large.  Use  pins  to  fasten  a  set  together. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 

Drawing  Exercise  to  teach  Careful  Use  of  Measure,  and 
Perception  of  Form  and  Size 

(This  exercise  may  be  taken  the  second  month  of  first 
primary  school  year,  and  continued  several  months, 
by  children  who  have  received  full  kindergarten  training.) 


NUMBER    WORK,    FIRST    GRADE          77 

Draw  on  paper  one-inch,  two-inch,  and  three-inch 
squares,  using  measure.  Continue  to  draw  larger  and 
larger  squares.  Draw  the  same  without  measure. 
Draw  oblongs  of  any  given  dimensions,  first  with  and 
then  without  the  measure. 

Draw  lines  one  inch  long,  two  inches  long,  first  with, 
then  without  measure.  Grade  I. 

Lines  one-half  inch  long,  one  and  one-half  inches 
long,  etc.,  in  the  same  manner.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Draw  forms  and  divide  them,  by  lines,  into  halves, 
thirds,  fourths,  •  etc.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Draw  a  plant  having  four  flowers.  Draw  another 
having  twice  as  many.  Draw  another  having  three 
times  as  many.  Draw  one  having  one-half  as  many. 
Use  other  representations,  as,  a  house  having  a  certain 
number  of  windows;  another  having  twice  as  many, 
etc.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

II. 

EXERCISES  WITH  PEGS 

EXERCISE  i. 

Rows  laid  in  order  of  numbers. 
I 

II 
III 

I  I  I  I   etc-  Grade  I. 

EXERCISE  2. 
Rows  laid  in  twos. 

II  II      II      II      II 

II       II       II       II       II  Qradel. 


78  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WOR£ 

EXERCISE  3. 
Rows  laid  in  threes,  etc. 

Ml      Ml      Ml      Ml  Grader. 

EXERCISE  4. 
Tell  the  children  to  build  woodpiles,  laying  three  logs 


and  two  logs ;  or  four  logs  and  three  logs,  as    - 


Or  tell  them  to  make  a  four  or  five  barred  gate  with 
a  cross-bar,  as  /  using  any  number,  according 
to  the  ability  of  the  child.  Grade  I. 

Exercises  with  Pegs  to  increase  Perceptions  of  Relative 
Magnitudes 

(These  exercises  may  be  used  in  first  primary  year. 
They  may  be  used  in  the  second  month  in  school  by 
those  children  who  have  had  full  kindergarten  training ; 
in  the  latter  part  of  the  year  by  those  children  who 
have  not  received  such  training.) 

Lay  two  pegs  to  form  a  vertical  (or  horizontal)  line. 
Close  to  the  right  (or  left)  of  this  line,  lay  a  line  of 
pegs  twice  as  long.  At  some  distance  from  these  two 
lines,  lay  a  vertical  (or  horizontal)  line  of  three  pegs. 
Close  to  the  right  (or  left)  of  this  line,  lay  a  line  twice 
as  long.  Lay  a  line  of  three  pegs,  then  a  line  twice 
as  long,  etc.  The  children  will  be  able  to  do  this 
without  reference  to  the  number  of  pegs  required,  and 
will,  incidentally,  learn  a  good  deal  of  number. 

Vary  this  exercise  by  laying  lines  one-half  as  long  as 
other  lines ;  three  times  as  long ;  and  in  the  latter  part 
of  the  year,  one-third  or  one-fourth  as  long.  Grade  I. 


NUMBER    WORK,   FIRST    GRADE          79 

Exercise  with  Pegs  to  increase  Perceptions  of  Form, 
and  Relative  Size 

(This  exercise  may  be  used  the  first  month  of  the  first 
school  year  by  children  who  have  received  kindergarten 
training,  —  three  or  four  months  later  by  children  who 
have  not  had  such  training.) 

Lay,  with  pegs,  a  small  rectangle.  At  the  right  or 
left  side,  lay  a  rectangle  of  a  slightly  larger  size.  Next 
the  same  form  a  little  larger,  and  so  on.  Grade  I. 

Lay  oblongs   and  triangles  in  the  same  way. 

Grade  I. 

Lay  vertical,  horizontal  and  oblique  lines,  dividing 
them  (by  single  pegs)  into  halves,  thirds,  fourths,  etc. 

Grade  I. 

Lay  squares  and  oblongs.  Divide  them,  by  lines  of 
pegs,  into  halves,  thirds,  fourths,  etc.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

Work  tvith  Pegs  and  Figtires 

Material:  Printed  figures  cut  from  calendars  or  bought 
in  sheets,  envelopes.  Give  each  child  pegs  and 
envelopes  containing  figures. 

EXERCISE  i. 

Place  figures  on  desks  in  rows.  Place  corresponding 
number  of  pegs  below  each  figure.  Grade  I. 

EXERCISE  2. 

Teach  the  children  how  to  lay  the  pegs  to  represent 
the  table  of  twos  :  — 

II 

II      II 

II      N      II   etc.,  up  to  twelve  twos.       Grade  I. 


8o  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

EXERCISE  3. 

When  the  children  can  lay  the  pegs  well,  distribute 
envelopes  containing  figures,  and  let  them  find  and  place 
the  figures  corresponding  to  the  groups,  thus  :  — 

II       2 

II      II      4 

M       M       M       6,  etc.  Grade  I. 

Teach  threes  and  fours  in  the  same  way. 

Note:    Exercise    I.    is    useful    during    the    third   and,  fourth 
months.     II.  and  III.  during  the  last  three  months. 

Pegs  —  Signs  and,  Figures 

Purpose:  Development  of  multiplication  and  division. 

INTERPRETING   SIGNS 

The  written  expression  is  placed  upon  the  board,  as, 
4  X  2,  2  X  3,  3  X  3,  and  so  forth.  The  children  take 
their  pegs  and  arrange  them  upon  their  desks ;  two 
groups  with  four  in  a  group  in  the  first  row,  three 
groups  with  two  in  a  group  in  the  next  row,  and  three 
groups  with  three  in  a  group  in  the  next  row. 

Grades  I.  and  II. 
DIVISION 

In  the  division,  if  the  equations  are  7  -r-  3,  8  -f-  4,  the 
children  place  seven  pegs  in  the  first  row  and  divide 
them  into  groups  with  three  pegs  in  each  group  and 
one  peg  remaining ;  then  place  eight  pegs  in  the  second 
row  and  divide  them  into  groups  with  four  pegs  in  each 

group.  Grade  I. 

Note :  Use  these  exercises  during  the  last  two  months  of  the 
first  year. 


NUMBER    WORK,    FIRST    GRADE          81 

III. 
STRINGING  BEADS 

Material  required :   (a)    Twenty-four     spool      boxes ; 

(U)  Twelve  gray  lacings;    (c)  Red  and  white  glass 

beads. 

These  beads  can  be  bought  at  toy  stores  at  five  cents 
a  bunch.  Cut  lacings  in  halves ;  tie  knots  at  the  end 
of  each  string.  Put  fifty  red  and  fifty  white  beads  in 
each  box  and  one  lacing.  (Instead  of  the  lacing,  patent 
shoe  button  needle,  with  strong  cord  attached,  may  be 
used.) 

Instruct  children  to  string  a  certain  number  of  red 
and  white  beads  alternately.  Grade  I. 

This  exercise  aids  in  number  and  increases  ability  to 
follow  directions. 

Use  during  the  first  two  months. 

IV. 

STRINGING  TABLETS 

Material  required:  (a)  Ten  gray  lacings.  Cut  these 
in  halves,  making  twenty  strings.  Tie  knots  at 
end  of  each  string;  (b)  Colored  tablets  of  different 
colors  and  different  shapes.  These  can  be  bought  or 
made  from  Bristol  board ;  (<:)  Twenty  boxes. 

V. 

WORK  WITH  LENTILS  AND  STICKS 

Material:  Sticks  and  lentils.  Lentils  can  be  bought 
at  any  grocer's. 

Manner  of  using:  Make  number  pictures 
with  lentils,  and  enclose  each  picture  with 
sticks  (wooden  toothpicks  may  be  used). 


82 


PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


Make  as  many  number  pictures  of  any  number  as 
there  are  combinations  of  two  numbers  to  make  the 
number.  Thus :  —  Grade  I. 


Then  with  extra  sticks  lay  off  the  lentils  to  show  com- 
binations of  any  two  numbers  to  make  the  number 
under  consideration.  Thus :  — 


Proceed  in  the  same  manner  with  all  the  lentil  pictures. 
Toothpicks  may  be  used  also  in  making  squares,  tri- 
angles, etc.  Place  inside  groups  of  twos,  fours,  sixes, 
etc.  Divide  these  into  halves  by  placing  a  stick  ver- 
tically, horizontally,  or  obliquely  among  them.  Grade  I. 


VI. 

SPLIT  PEAS  AND  STICKS 

HOW   THE    FAMILY    MOVES. 

Material  required :  (a)  Oblong  blocks  (obtained 
from  city);  (b)  Paper  and  pencils  (obtained  from 
city);  (c)  Split  peas,  ten  cents  a  quart;  (jd)  Tooth- 
picks and  half  toothpicks. 

1.  Make  oblongs  with  sticks. 

2.  Make  given  number  pictures  with  split  peas.     For 
example,    picture    ten   at    top    of  desk;    the    empty 


NUMBER    WORK,    FIRST    GRADE          83 

oblongs   or   houses,  below;  the    family   of  ten   moves 
into  the  empty  double  house.     Thus : 


Empty  double  house. 


Five  in  each  room, 


Six  in  one  room  and  four  in  the  other 
room. 


Represent  all  possible  combinations. 
The  same  can  be  represented  by  drawing  round  or 
oblong  tablets  and  making  rings  instead  of  using  peas. 
Use  this  exercise  during  the  first  half  of  the  year. 

Grade  I. 
VII. 
CARDS  AND   SPLIT  PEAS 

Use  oblong  cards  of  a  convenient  size.  The  teacher 
makes  on  the  board  oblongs  with  pictures  of  the  num- 
ber in  the  upper  half.  Children  are  to  lay  the  peas 
on  their  cards  in  the  same  way  and  fill  in  the  lower 
half  with  the  number  of  peas  necessary  to  make  the 
number  required.  Grade  I. 

Note:  This  exercise  is  useful  during  the  third  and  fourth 
months.  Later  in  the  year  require  the  children  to  write 
two  addition  "stories"  and  two  subtraction  "stories" 
about  the  number  represented  in  each  card. 


84  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

VIII. 
ANOTHER  WAY  OF  OBTAINING  FIGURES 

Number  cards  containing  figures,  signs  of  addition, 
subtraction,  multiplication,  and  division,  also  the  signs 
of  dollars  and  cents,  may  be  procured  at  the  printer's. 

After  developing  the  different  combinations  in  any 
number,  give  each  child  a  box  containing  these  figures 
and  signs,  and  let  them  make  the  combinations  on  their 
desks.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

IX. 

CARDS  USED  AS  A  COPY 

1.  A  set  of  cards  with  dots  arranged  domino-fashion 
may  be  painted  in  water-color.  Grade  I. 

The  cards  should  be  of  dimensions 
large  enough  to  be  seen  across  the  room ; 
the  dot  the  size  of  a  silver  quarter.  The 
children  may  copy  the  dots  and  oblongs,  with  the  cor- 
responding equation  underneath. 

3  +  4  =  7 
4+  3  =  7 

Twenty-five  cards  will  give  the  combinations  up  to 
ten.  These  cards  being  always  at  hand,  no  time  is 
wasted  in  putting  work  upon  the  blackboard  and  much 
space  is  saved. 

2.  Letters  or  figures  may  be  painted  on  large  cards 
and  outlined  by  the  children  with  pegs  or  split  peas. 
These  cards  should  be  ten  by  twelve  inches.     Grade  I. 

Use  this  exercise  when  teaching  the  forms  of  the 
figures. 


NUMBER    WORK,   FIRST    GRADE          8$ 

3.  Blank  Cards.     Cut  into  strips  and  use  in  the  fol- 
lowing ways : — 

(a)  Figures  in  order  from  1-5,  for  children  to  copy. 
(£)  Same  with  figures  from  i-io. 
(V)   Same  with  figures  2,  4,  6,  8,  10. 

(d)  Same  with  figures  I,  3,  5,  7,  9. 

(e)  Write  questions  in  addition  and  subtraction  with- 

out answers. 
(/)  Multiplication  and  division  in  the  same  way. 

Grade  I. 

Use  a,  b,  c,  d,  during  the  first  half  of  the  year ;  e,  f, 
during  the  last  of  the  year. 

4.  Cards  prepared  for  Class  Work.     Write  all  the  com- 
binations from    i-io   in  columns  on  large-sized  card- 
board with  brush  and  ink. 

Pupils  copy  columns  and  find  answers.  Grade  I. 

X. 

WORK  WITH  TABLETS 

Material :   Oblong  tablets,  one  inch  by  two  inches,  cut 
from  leather  board  or  tagstock. 

EXERCISE  i.  Each  child  is  provided  with  pencil, 
paper,  and  tablet.  Teacher  draws  on  the  blackboard 
four  large  representations  of  the  tablets  with  pictures  in 
them,  thus:  — 


86 


PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


Let  some  child  read  the  pictures  as  the  teacher 
points  to  them,  thus:  1  +  2,  2  +  3,  etc.  No  figures 
are  to  be  written.  Then  for  busy  work  the  children 
mark  round  their  tablets  and  copy  the  pictures,  mak- 
ing as  many  rows  as  possible,  without  crowding.  All 
the  number  pictures  taught  in  the  first  grade  can  be 
made  in  this  way.  Grade  I. 

EXERCISE  2.  After  figures  are  taught,  arrange  as 
follows : 


6+3=9         5+4=9 
3  +  6  =  9        4+  5=9 

9-5  =4 
9-3=6        9-4=5 


TRANSITION  FROM  NUMBER  PICTURES  TO 
FIGURES 

Calendars  of  large  figures  are  mounted  upon  tagstock 
and  cut  into  pieces  so  that  each  piece  contains  one  figure. 
Upon  the  back  of  each  slip  is  placed  the  number  picture 
corresponding  to  the  figure  upon  the  other  side.  The 
children  arrange  the  number  pictures,  following  an  order 
upon  the  blackboard,  and  match  the  number  pictures 
with  the  figures;  or  they  place  the  figures  in  a  given 

order  and  match  these  with  the  number  pictures. 

Grade  I. 

DOMINOES  MADE  FROM  TAGSTOCK 
Represent  a  number  on  one  half,  leaving  the  other 

half  blank  to  be  filled  with  corresponding  figure. 

Grade  I. 


NUMBER    WORK,    FIRST    GRADE          87 

ENVELOPES,  FIGURES,  AND  SIGNS 

Make  a  set  of  envelopes  with  fifteen  examples  on  the 
outside.  Inside,  place  the  figures  and  signs  necessary 
to  make  the  questions  and  answers.  The  children  then 
find  the  first  figure  of  the  first  equation  on  the  envelope, 
then  the  sign ;  then  the  next  figure,  then  the  sign  and 
figure,  which  gives  the  answer.  These  are  placed  on  the 
desk.  Grades  I.  and  II. 

WORK  WITH  FIGURES 

Material:  Figures  may  be  obtained  by  pasting  old 
calendars  on  cardboard,  then  cutting  the  figures  apart ; 
or  they  may  be  made  on  cardboard  with  a  rubber  pen. 

Manner  of  using :  Give  each  child  a  handful  of  figures 
from  one  to  ten. 

1.  Figures  sorted  and  laid  in  rows ;  2's,  3's,  4*3,  etc. 
This  helps  to  fix  the  names  of  figures. 

2.  Figures   laid    in   order   of  numbers,    i-io.     This 
assists  in  counting. 

Both  i  and  2  are  useful  the  first  of  the  year,  or  when- 
ever it  is  desirable  that  the  pupils  should  recognize 
figures. 


IX. 
PROBLEMS  IN  NUMBER  FOR  GRADES  II.  AND  III. 

CHILDREN  of  second  and  third  grades  may  be  very  much 
helped  by  exercises  which  teach  them  how  to  illustrate  the 
conditions  of  the  problems  which  are  presented  to  them  in 
number.  It  often  happens  that  children  fail  in  arithmetic, 
not  because  they  cannot  add,  subtract,  multiply,  or  divide, 
but  because  they  cannot  picture  the  conditions  which  are 
stated  in  the  problem.  Their  imagination  is  deficient.  It 
should  be  trained  through  thoughtful  exercises.  If  a  child 
makes  a  picture  to  represent  the  problem  as  it  appears  to 
him,  the  teacher  is  enabled  to  judge  whether  his  mental 
picture  of  the  conditions  is  clear  or  vague. 

For  example,  recall  the  typical  problem :  "  James  and 
John  started  from  the  same  tree  and  walked  in  opposite 
directions.  One  walked  12  feet  and  the  other  8  feet.  How 
far  apart  were  they  ?  "  The  child  may  fail  to  solve  this  prob- 
lem correctly  because  he  does  not  know  that  12  and  8  are  20, 
but  the  failure  of  the  majority  is  due  to  the  fact  that  the  word 
"  opposite  "  is  not  clearly  understood  by  them.  If,  however, 
the  pupil  draws  a  picture  of  a  tree  and  of  James  1 2  feet  away 
on  one  side  and  John  8  feet  away  on  the  other,  he  can  hardly 
fail  to  get  the  correct  result.  It  matters  very  little  whether 
the  picture  or  the  diagram  is  used.  The  picture  is  more 
pleasing  to  the  young  child.  The  diagram  should  take  the 
place  of  the  picture  in  the  third  and  fourth  grades.  Such 
practice  will  prove  very  helpful  in  stating  conditions  in  all 
problems  in  later  school  life. 


NUMBER,    GRADES    II.    AND    III.  89 

The  following  exercises  are  suggested  for  teachers  who 
must  prepare  occupation  for  many  classes  and  who  may,  there- 
fore, desire  ready-made  exercises  for  occasional  use.  ED. 

1.  A    mat   is    four   feet    long   and    two    feet   wide. 
How   many   feet   of   braid    shall    I    buy   to    bind   the 
mat? 

2.  How  much  fringe  shall  I  buy  for  the  ends  of  a 
mat  six  feet  long  and  two  feet  wide? 

3.  John  has  two  bamboo  fishing-poles.     One  is  six 
feet  long,  the  other  is  twice  as  long.     How  many  feet 
of  bamboo  in  the  two  poles? 

4.  Mary  made  an  apple-pie.     She   gave  one-half  of 
it  to  Annie  and  a  third  to  Tom.     How  much  was  left 
for  herself? 

5.  Kate  has  three  times  five  cents.     Ned    has   two 
times  seven  cents.     Which  has  the  more  money?     How 
much  more?     Show  it. 

6.  I  have  a  garden  about  four  feet  long  and  six  feet 
wide.     How  many  geraniums  can  I  plant  in  the  bed  if 
I  put  them  one  foot  apart? 

7.  A  flag-pole   stands    between   the   house  and   the 
barn.     The  pole  is  twenty  feet  from  the  house  and  sixty 
feet  from  the  barn.     How  far  is  it  from  the  house  to 
the  barn? 

8.  May's  lily  has  two    blossoms.     Ruth's    has  three 
times  as  many  as  May's.     Draw  both  lilies. 

9.  A  room  is  ten  feet  long  and  nine  feet  wide.     How 
much  picture  moulding  must  be  bought  for  it? 

10.  Henry's  room  has  three  windows.     Each  window 
is  two  yards  high.     His  mother  is  making  muslin  cur- 
tains for  the  windows.     How  many  yards  of  muslin  must 
she  use? 


90  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

11.  There  are  six  rows  of  desks  in  a  school-room  and 
eight  desks  in  a  row.     How  many  desks  are  there  in 
the  school-room? 

12.  I  have  three  window-boxes  with  five  geraniums 
in  each  box.     How  many  geraniums  have  I  ? 

13.  John's  book-case  has  three  shelves.     He  has  ten 
books  on  each  shelf.     How  many  books  has  he  ? 

14.  My  garden   is  twenty  feet  long  and  twenty-four 
feet   wide.      How   many  feet  of  wire  fencing   must   I 
buy? 

15.  Kate   has   one-half  of  twelve  apples.     May  has 
one-third  of  fifteen  apples.     Show  which  has  the  greater 
number. 

16.  A  mug  holds  half  as  much  as  a  bowl.     The  bowl 
holds  half  as  much    as  a  pitcher.     The  pitcher  holds 
half  as  much  as  a  jug.     The  jug  holds  eight  quarts. 
How  much  does  the  mug  hold? 

17.  Henry  found  7  eggs  in  one  nest,  6  eggs  in  another, 
and  5  in  another.     How  many  eggs  did  he  find? 

18.  George  picked  25  peaches  from  a  tree  and  gave 
1 6  of  them  to  a  little    sick  boy.     How  many  did  he 
have  left? 

19.  Mary  found  8  buttercups   and  9  daisies  on  her 
way  to  school.     How  many  flowers  did  she  find  ? 

20.  A  long  ladder  has  13  steps,  and  a  short  one  has 
7 ;   how  many  more  steps  has  the  long  ladder  than  the 
short  one? 

21.  In  a  certain  school,  6  pupils  sit  in  the  first  row, 
5  in  the  second  row,  and  7  in  the  third ;  how  many  are 
there  in  the  three  rows? 

22.  How  many  parts  has  a  clover  leaf?     How  many 
parts  have  7  clover  leaves? 


NUMBER,   GRADES    II.    AND    III.          91 

23.  In  a  street  there  were  12  doves  picking  up  corn, 
but  a  dog  frightened  away  8  of  them.     How  many  were 
left? 

24.  Kate  cut  an  orange  into  5  equal  parts,  and  then 
gave  away  2  of  the  parts.     How  much  of  the  orange 
did  she  give  away? 

25.  Divide  an  apple  so  that  8  boys  may  each  have  a 
piece  of  equal  size. 

26.  Ned  has  6  quarts  of  strawberries.     How  many 
pint  baskets  can  he  fill? 

27.  Joseph   had    34   marbles,  but  lost  half  a  dozen. 
How  many  has  he  left? 

28.  A  schoolroom   contains  35    desks;    there  are   7 
rows.     How  many  desks  are  there  in  each  row? 

29.  A  boy  found  2 1  eggs  in  the  barn.     He  put  them 
in  his  hat  to  carry  into  the  house,  but  fell  and  broke 
some.     When  he  reached  the  house,'  he  found  a  dozen 
eggs  in  his  hat.     How  many  did  he  break? 

30.  If  two  men  start  from  the  same  place  and  travel 
in  the  same  direction,  but  one  travels  7  miles  an  hour 
and  the  other  9  miles  an  hour,  how  far  apart  will  they 
be  at  the  end  of  two  hours? 

31.  A  boy,  having  25  cents,  bought  I  quart  of  cherries 
for  10  cents,  one  orange  for  5  cents,  and  some  candy 
for  8  cents.     How  many  cents  had  he  left? 

32.  I  saw  4  sleds  going  down  hill,  and  on  each  sled 
was  one  girl  and  two  boys.     How  many  children  did  I 
see  going  down  hill? 

33.  Ned  and   Jack  each  have  a   peach-tree.     There 
are   22   peaches   on   Ned's  tree,  but   only  one-half  as 
many  on   Jack's  tree.     How  many  peaches   are   there 
on  Jack's  tree? 


92  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

34.  A  boy  had  22  oranges  and  lost  6  of  them.     He 
divided  the    rest    equally  among   8    of  his    playmates 
How  many  oranges  did  each  playmate  receive? 

35.  Nellie  saw  5   gray  squirrels  on  one   tree  and  6 
birds  in  another  tree.     If  2  of  the  squirrels  and  one  of 
the  birds  go  away,  how  many  squirrels  and  birds  are 
left? 

36.  Rose  had  5  apples,  Jack  had  8  apples,  Will  had 
9   apples,  and   Joe    had    10.     How   many  did  they  all 
have? 


X. 

EXERCISES   DEMANDING  PRACTICAL  JUDGMENT 
IN   NUMBER 

THE  common  tendency  in  the  early  work  in  number  is  to 
emphasize  the  work  with  figures  and  to  omit  the  experience 
which  demands  the  use  of  figures.  We  frequently  attempt  to 
teach  a  child  the  tables  when  he  sees  no  use  for  them. 
Fractions  appear  to  him  as  mere  figures.  Pupils  in  gram- 
mar grades  will  often  place  figures  upon  -the  boards  when 
called  upon  to  show  fractions. 

Great  care  should  be  taken  in  primary  grades  to  present 
the  figure  only  as  the  sign  of  the  number,  and  the  equation 
only  as  a  sign  of  a  truth  which  pertains  to  numbers.  The 
"  process  "  is  simply  the  manner  of  solving  problems  which 
occur  in  every-day  life,  and  the  written  record  in  figures 
is  the  arithmetical  statement  of  the  thing  which  is  done. 
"  John  has  three  dozen  eggs.  How  much  will  he  receive  for 
them  at  twenty  cents  a  dozen?"  This  is  a  practical  problem 
which  John  will  need  to  work  out  if  he  keeps  hens.  It  is  of 
practical  interest  to  his  mother  if  she  buys  eggs.  He  needs 
to  know  that  three  twenties  are  sixty.  He  shou!4  receive 
sixty  cents  for  his  eggs.  In  the  same  way  it  may  be  conven- 
ient for  him  to  know  that  there  are  twelve  eggs  in  each  dozen ; 
six  eggs  in  a  half-dozen ;  that  if  twelve  eggs  are  worth  twenty 
cents,  six  eggs  must  be  worth  ten  cents,  and  three  eggs  worth 
five  cents.  The  relation  between  the  whole  dozen  and  the 
half-dozen,  the  price  of  a  whole  dozen  and  the  price  of  a  half- 


94  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

dozen,  between  ten  and  twenty,  five  and  ten,  appears  in  this 
example.  The  child's  solution  of  the  problem  depends  upon 
his  power  to  see  this  relation.  It  must  be  remembered,  how- 
ever, that  this  relation  is  taught,  not  by  mere  figures,  but  by 
objects  and  groups  of  objects.  He  must  cut  objects  into 
halves,  must  realize  that  the  value  of  the  whole  is  equal  to 
the  value  of  the  two  halves.  He  must  divide  objects  or 
groups  of  objects,  or  multiply  them  so  as  to  have  their  value, 
double  their  value,  etc. 

For  example,  he  knows  that  he  can  buy  a  cake  for  ten 
cents.  One-half  the  cake  is,  therefore,  worth  five  cents. 
Two  cakes  would  be  worth  twenty  cents.  He  cuts  a  piece  of 
paper  to  represent  the  cake.  He  must  cut  it  into  halves  to 
represent  the  half-cake;  he  must  have  two  equal  pieces  to 
represent  the  two  cakes ;  he  must  recognize  five  as  one-half 
of  ten;  ten  as  twice  five;  twenty  as  twice  ten.  These 
numerical  facts  should  be  taught  only  in  connection  with  the 
study  of  the  things  themselves.  The  most  valuable  part  of 
the  primary  school  number  work  is  that  which  emphasizes 
relative  sizes  and  values  and  which  applies  the  truths  of 
number  to  the  children's  experience. 

If  this  be  true,  it  follows  that  a  large  portion  of  the  drill  and 
practice  in  primary  number  should  be  given  to  actual  experi- 
ence with  values  and  the  study  of  the  relation  of  numbers 
to  the  numerical  expression  of  the  facts  observed.  The 
following  exercises  have  been  suggested  to  meet  this  need. 
They  may  be  multiplied  indefinitely  by  any  teacher  who 
understands  how  to  use  them  wisely.  ED. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Cut  a  square  of  paper  one  inch  side ;  two  inches 
side  ;  three  inches  side,  etc. 

Your  square  represents  a  cake.  Show  one-half  the 
cake.  Show  one-fourth  the  cake. 


PRACTICAL  JUDGMENT   IN   NUMBER      95 

2.  Your  cake  is  worth   12  cents.     What  is  one-half 
of  the  cake  worth?     One-fourth? 

3.  Three  boys  buy  the  cake  together.     How  many 
cents  must  each  boy  pay?     Show  his  share  of  the  cake 
by  a  drawing  or  folding. 

4.  Draw  and  cut  squares  having  a  given  diameter. 
Let  the  squares  represent  cakes.     Use  them  as  above. 

5.  Draw  and  cut  rectangles  having  given  dimensions. 
A  given  rectangle  represents  a  floor.      It  will  cost  $20 
to  carpet  the  floor.     What  will  it  cost  to  carpet  a  floor 
half  as  large?     Represent  the  problem  by  means  of  the 
rectangle.     What  will  it  cost  to  carpet  a  floor  twice  as 
large?     Represent  the  problem. 

6.  John's  father  has  a  rectangular  field.     Represent 
it.     It  will  cost  $5.00  to  mow  the  field.     Dick's  father 
has  a  field  twice  as  large.     Represent  the  field.     What 
will  it  cost  to  mow  this  field  ? 

7.  Make  a  square  of  a  given  size.     Make  a  rectangle 
twice  as  large.      Make  another  rectangle  three  times  as 
large  as  the  square.      Four  times,  and  so  on.      Make 
problems  using  the  rectangles  as  illustrations. 

8.  Draw  a  line   to  represent  the  conditions  of  the 
problem. 

Draw  pictures  to  represent  the  conditions. 

9.  Use  toy  money.     Attach  it  to  the  objects  or  fig- 
ures to  indicate  the  relative  values. 

10.  Cut   strips    of    carpet  to    cover   the    desk.      Cut 
square    inches   to    cover   the    surface    of    boxes. 

Lay  square  inches  to  cover  surfaces  of  given  dimen- 
sions. 

Mark  out  square  yards  on  the  floor  or  in  the  school 
yard. 

11.  Let  the  children  make  for  themselves  bundles  of 


96  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

splints  (or  wooden  toothpicks) ,  by  which  they  can 
represent  numbers  made  up  of  tens  and  units.  Illus- 
trate simple  problems  by  means  of  these  bundles. 

12.  Bring  little  articles  to  school,  —  toys,  utensils,  etc. 
State  actual  cost  or  value,  and  make  problems  involv- 
ing buying  or  selling  such  articles. 

13  Let  the  children  relate  their  actual  experience  in 
building  and  making,  buying  or  selling,  and  ask  the 
class  to  compare. 


EXERCISES  IN  MEASUREMENT 

Exercises  in  measurement  are  very  valuable.  Every  child 
should  provide  himself  with  a  foot  rule,  yard-stick,  and  tape- 
measure,  which  he  has  made  for  himself.  Measurements 
should  be  made  and  compared,  and  this  work  assigned  as 
actual  individual  or  class  work.  The  measurements  should  be 
compared  at  the  period  of  recitation.  Accuracy  and  pains- 
taking should  be  insisted  upon.  Later,  measurement  can  be 
applied  to  the  sewing,  cooking,  and  wood-working,  where  such 
practice  is  indispensable. 

The  following  examples  are  suggestive  : 

1.  The  skirt  of  Jeannette's  next  dress  is  to  be  trimmed  with 
ribbon.     How  many  yards  of  ribbon  will  be  required  for  one 
row  of  trimming?     Two  rows?     Three  rows?     How   much 
will  it  cost  at  five  cents  a  yard  ?     Six  cents  ?     Ten  cents  ? 

2.  Kate  is  making  candy.     The  recipe  calls  for  a  cup  of 
sugar,  a  half-cup  of  cream,  and  one-fourth  pound  chocolate. 
To  make  twice  as  much  candy,  how  much  sugar  does  she 
need?     How  much  cream?     How  much  chocolate? 

3.  Jack  is  making  a  checker-board.     He  divides  the  board 
into  two-inch  squares.     How  large  must  his  board  be  ? 

As  soon  as  this  element  of  reality  enters  into  the  child's 
work,  he  will  learn  readily,  will  apply  his  new  knowledge  and 


PRACTICAL  JUDGMENT   IN   NUMBER     97 

will  retain  what  he  has  learned.  He  will  remember  only  what 
he  uses.  He  will  use  nothing  which  does  not  enter  into  his  own 
experience.  It  is  because  the  practice  runs  against  the  grain 
that  it  is  necessary  to  spend  so  much  time  in  primary  drill. 
Teachers  are  urged  to  observe  the  plays  which  interest  the 
children,  their  building,  their  making,  their  buying  and  sell- 
ing, their  trading.  Out  of  these  experiences  abundant  prob- 
lems may  be  constructed,  to  be  repeated  in  the  school 
practice.  ED. 


XI. 

SEAT  WORK   IN  NUMBER   FOR  GRADES   II. 
AND   III. 

MEASURING  and  CUTTING  exercises  should  be  given 
freely,  especially  during  the  first  half  of  the  year. 
They  may  be  similar  to  those  given  in  Grade  I.,  ex- 
cept that  more  difficult  measurement  should  be  re- 
quired. These  exercises  should  emphasize  the  oral 
arithmetic  lessons  which  are  being  given  at  the  time. 

TYPE  EXAMPLES  may  be  put  on  the  blackboard  by 
the  teacher.  The  children  change  the  figures  in  the 
example,  otherwise  retaining  the  form. 

Ex.  John  sold  50  newspapers  and  Edwin  sold  28. 
How  many  more  papers  were  sold  by  John  than  by 
Edwin? 

Pupil's  Ex.  John  sold  42  newspapers  and  Edwin 
sold  23.  How  many  more  newspapers  were  sold  by 
John  than  by  Edwin? 

This  exercise  may  be  varied  by  using  the  names 
of  members  of  the  class.  Several  examples  may  be 
required. 

Through  such  practice,  the  children  will  become 
familiar  with  the  method  of  solving  any  easy  problem. 

The  tables  of  long  measure,  dry  measure,  and  any  other 
tables  required  in  the  course,  can  be  fixed  more  firmly 
in  the  child's  mind  by  frequent  use  in  these  examples. 

After  a  few  months'  practice  in  these  examples  use 


SEAT   WORK   IN   NUMBER  99 

two  problems  involving  two  dissimilar  operations.     The 
pupils  should  make  one  example  of  each  sort. 

This  work  in  problems  should  receive  more  attention 
than  the  more  abstract  number  work. 

The  material  mentioned  below  is  useful: 

1.  Individual  counting-frames.    These  are  wires  upon 
which  fifty  (50)  beads  are  strung;   they  may  be  used 
in  all  combinations  of  numbers  to  fifty. 

Each  wire  is  about  1 8  inches  long  and  \  inch 
diameter.  Wire  may  be  bought  and  cut  at  any  store 
where  wire  is  sold.  Glass  beads  |-  inch  diameter,  with 
holes  large  enough  to  admit  wire. 

The  beads  are  strung  two  blue  and  one  white  alter- 
nately, every  tenth  bead  a  yellow  one.  The  wires  must 
be  turned  up  in  a  loop  at  each  end,  to  prevent  beads 
from  slipping  off. 

Wire  and  beads  for  fifty-six  children  cost  $3.00. 

2.  Cards  containing  problems  may  be  purchased  at 
school  supply  firms.     The  questions  may  be  copied  and 
answers   written,  or   work  may  be    performed  without 
copying  questions. 

3.  Cut  large-sized  figures  from  old  calendars.     These 
may   be    placed    in    envelopes  and    distributed    to   the 
children   when   needed,  or   they  may.  be  mounted   on 
stiff  paper  or  cards  and  placed  in  boxes. 

Unmounted  they  last  a  long  time,  and  are  valuable  in 
helping  children  to  a  knowledge  of  counting  from  one 
to  thirty,  in  arranging  the  calendar  months  and  for 
assorting.  They  may  be  mounted  so  as  to  give  all  the 
numbers  from  one  to  one  hundred,  and  in  this  way  may 
be  used  for  decade  work  and  for  multiplication  and 
division. 


XII. 

MISCELLANEOUS   EXERCISES  WITH 
ABSTRACT  NUMBERS 

I. 

Write  equations  and   have  the  children  supply  the 
missing  term,  as 


i8-?=u      ?-T-;  =   5        7x8=?      16-7=? 
These  may  be  written  on  cards  3^x4  inches. 

II. 

Ten  sets  of  cards  3^x4  inches,  every  card  different, 
may  be  used  for  drill  on  numbers  from  10  to  100.  Six 
sets  include  some  of  the  forms  of  equations  just  men- 
tioned, as, 

(1)  (2)  (3) 

9  +  8=  9+  ?=  17  ?  +  9=  r5 

8  +  7=  8+?=  15  ?  +  7  =  15 

7  +  5=  7+?=i5  ?+5  =  '5 

W  (5)  (6) 

17-8=  i7-?  =  8  ?-8  =  9 

12-5=  12-  ?  =  5  ?—  5  =  7 


(7) 


ABSTRACT    NUMBERS 
(8)  (9) 


101 


(10) 


-f-2  ^3  ^4  -7  H-9  -M2 

10  27  4  8   14   54 

6  3  16  36   16   67 

8  36  24  75   29  109 

12  30  48  86   56   47 

24  21  28  29   98   86 


94+8  6x9 

37-9  8-f-    4 

63  +  9  7x8 

74-6  144  H-  12 


etc. 


etc. 


etc. 


etc. 


III. 

Let  children  make  lists  of  numbers.  Begin  with  a 
certain  number  and  add  an  equal  number  each  time; 
set  down  results  to  about  100.  Thus,  begin  with  zero 
and  add  two  each  time ;  begin  with  two  and  add  three 
each  time. 

o  2 

2  5 

4  8 

6  ii 

IV. 

Write  on  the  board  a  number,  as  30,  with  a  row  of 
numbers  under  it,  thus ;  —  2-9-6-4-5-1-4-3-7-8-.  Children 
add  2,  9,  etc.,  to  30,  then  subtract  2,  9,  etc.,  from  30. 


V. 

The  wheel  is  a  helpful  device  for  written  drill  in  num- 
ber. Place  a  row  of  numbers  around  the  inside  of 
the  circle ;  in  the  centre,  put  a  number  and  sign,  as 
8  +  .  The  children's  work  from  the  wheel,  as  it  now 
looks,  should  be, — 


102 


PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


8  +  2  =  10 

8+3=11 

8  +  5  =  13     etc. 


If  the   sign  and  number  are    reversed,   thus,  +  8,  the 
work  would  be,  — 

2  +  8 

3  +  8 

5  +  8     etc. 

The  cross  at  the  top  shows  the  starting-point.  The 
arrow  shows  which  way  to  take  the  numbers.  When 
the  pupils  are  able  to  do  more,  other  numbers  to  be 
added  may  be  placed  in  the  centre ;  then  subtraction 
may  be  taken;  place  a  number  and  sign,  as  12  — ;  the 
work  would  then  be, 


8  +  2  =  10 

8  +  3  =  ii 
8  +  5-13 
8  +  6  = 


12  —  2  —  10 

12-3  =  9 
12-  5  -  7 
12  —  6  =  etc, 


ABSTRACT    NUMBERS  103 

Gradually  multiplication  and  division  may  be  added  to 
the  work.  The  wheels  may  be  varied  in  many  ways, 
and  made  attractive  by  using  colored  chalks. 


VI. 

A  change  from  the  wheel,  yet  practically  the  same 
thing,  is  a  column  of  figures  written  on  the      6 
board,  embraced  in  a  bracket,  at  whose  point      3 


are  figures,  preceded  by  signs  which  tell  what  9 

is  required.    This  may  include  giving  the  first  5 

and  second  terms  to  find  the  third,  or  the  first  4 

and  third  to  find  the  second,  or  the  second  and  2 

third  to  find  the  first  term.      Grades  II.  and  III.  3 

VII. 

Prepare  a  chart  like  the  following,  for  rapid  drill  in 
addition,  subtraction,  multiplication,  and  division. 


+  7 

—  2 

X3 

— —  2 


io4 


PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


I 

ii 

21 

31 

4i 

5i 

61 

7i 

81 

9i 

2 

12 

22 

32 

42 

52 

62 

72 

82 

92 

3 

13 

23 

33 

43 

53 

63 

73 

83 

93 

4 

14 

24 

34 

44 

54 

64 

74 

84 

94 

5 

*5 

25 

35 

45 

55 

65 

75 

85 

95 

6 

16 

26 

36 

46 

56 

66 

76 

86 

96 

7 

i7 

27 

37 

47 

57 

67 

77 

87 

97 

8 

18 

28 

38 

48 

58 

68 

78 

88 

98 

9 

19 

-29 

39 

49 

59 

69 

79 

89 

99 

10 

20 

30 

40 

5° 

60 

70 

80 

90 

IOO 

VIII. 

Supply  each  child  with  a  quantity  of  pegs  and  an 
envelope  containing  numbers  from  one  to  fifty  (these 
are  written  on  cardboard  or  cut  from  calendars  and 
pasted).  When  told  to  make  a  certain  table,  —  for  in- 
stance, the  fours,  —  the  child  places  the  pegs  thus,  — 

MM 

MM      MM 
MM     MM     MM 

and  as  he  completes  each  progression,  finds  the  required 
number  in  the  envelope  and  places  it  thus : 


ABSTRACT    NUMBERS  105 


INI 

Grade  II. 

If  the  numbers  are  written  on  cards,  some  will  be  lost 
or  soiled  with  constant  use.  The  child  himself  may 
replace  these  by  writing  the  required  number  on  little 
squares  of  blank  card,  given  to  him  for  the  purpose. 

IX. 

Peg  boards  for  drill  on  the  "  tables."  Have  a  square 
board,  half  an  inch  thick,  with  twelve  rows  of  holes, 
twelve  holes  in  a  row,  the  holes  one  inch  apart ;  holes 
large  enough  to  admit  the  pointed  end  of  a  peg.  Any 
table  may  be  made,  by  placing  the  required  number  of 
pegs  in  each  row  down  the  twelve  rows.  Grade  II. 

X. 

Make  charts  covering  all  multiplications  and  divisions. 
Arranged  thus :  Written  by  children  thus : 

4  4  x  6  =  24 

4  6  X  4  =  24 

4        6  24  -f-  4  =    6 

46  24  -f-  6  =    4 

4        6 

_4 ^ 

24        24  Grade  II. 

These  charts  should  be  made  from  large  sheets  of 
gray  manila  paper,  marked  with  a  rubber  pen,  and 
provided  with  some  arrangement  for  hanging. 


io6  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

Seat  work  from  the  charts  should  follow  concrete 
work,  and  be  used  only  after  children  do  good  oral 
work  from  same  charts.  The  work  is  easily  looked 
over,  affords  constant  repetition,  and  forms  a  basis 
for  quick  drill. 


DRAWING   AND   WRITING 


XIII. 

EXERCISES  TO   ACCOMPANY   LESSONS   IN 
DRAWING 

1.  Make  circles,  squares,  and  oblongs  of  tough  brown 
paper. 

(a)  Let  the  children  outline  them,  placing  them  in 
rows. 

(b)  Let    the   children   outline    them   and   draw  the 
diameters. 

(c)  Let  the  children  outline  them  and  draw  the  diame- 
ters and  diagonals. 

(d)  Let  the  children  outline  them  and  combine  them 
in  designs.     (This  suggestion   should    be   followed   for 
busy  work  only  after  several  lessons  in  designing  have 
been   given  to   the  class,  as  suggested  in  the   regular 
course  in  drawing.     Otherwise  the  children  make  hap- 
hazard   arrangements  with   no   real  thought  of  design 
underlying  them ;   and  this,  while  it  may  serve  to  keep 
them   busy,  cannot   fail   to  affect   harmfully  the  work 
in  design.) 

2.  Objects  such  as  kites,  leaves,  stars,  may  be  cut 
out  of  tagstock.     Let  the  children  outline  them. 

3.  Simple,  straight,  and  curved  line  figures,  such  as 
squares,  circles,  fans,  flags,  and  ladders,  may  be  drawn 
by  the  teacher  on  both  sides  of  blank  cards  (a  differ- 
ent figure  on  each  side).     Give,  each  child  a  card,  with 


no  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

paper  on  which  to  draw  as  many  of  the  figures  as  the 
space  will  allow.  Encourage  orderly  arrangements  of 
drawings  in  rows  vertical  and  horizontal.  Try  to  prevent 
haphazard  arrangements  and  crowded  papers. 

4.  The  teacher  may  outline  figures  of  animals  upon 
cards.     Give  each  child  a  card  and  a  sheet  of  -tissue 
paper  and  let  him  trace  them,   or  give  him  drawing 
paper  and  let  him  draw  them. 

5.  In  October  let  each  child  bring  a  pretty  leaf  to 
school  and  trace  around  it,  then  put  in  the  veins,  and 
later  draw  it  freehand. 

6.  Let  the  children  trace  around  leaves,  color  them, 
and  then  cut  them  out.     In  using  colored  crayons  en- 
courage the  children  to  make  the  strokes  in  one  general 
direction,  rather  than  rubbing  round  and  round. 

7.  Cut  from  old  books  and  papers  outline  pictures  of 
flowers,  dogs,  cats,  rabbits,  etc.     Give  each  child  a  sheet 
of  tissue  paper  and  a  picture  and  let  him  outline  it. 
After  a  time  he  can  reproduce  it  freehand. 

8.  Let  the  children  draw  the  specimens  used  in  nature 
study,  as  seeds,  leaves,  fruits,  twigs,  and  flowers.    Pressed 
leaves  and  flowers  may  be  utilized  here. 

9.  Let  the  children  illustrate  the  subjects  talked  of  in 
the  general  lessons,  either  with  pegs  or  pencil.     For  ex- 
ample, in  November  the  teacher  may  outline  upon  the 
board  pictures  of  the  Mayflower,  Plymouth  Rock,  a  wig- 
wam, or  a  log  house,  and  the  children  will  be  delighted 
to  reproduce  them  upon  their  desks  with  pegs.     Then 
they  may  be  erased  from  the  board  and  the  children 
directed  to  draw  them  upon  paper,  with  such  additions 
of  their  own  as  their  imaginations  dictate.     The  general 
subjects  for  each  month  may  be  treated  in  a  similar 
manner. 


EXERCISES    IN     DRAWING  in 

10..  Let  them  illustrate  a  poem  or  a  story.     (See  pp. 
127-132.) 

11.  The  children  may  trace   the   geometric   figures, 
and  by  the  addition  of  a  few  lines  change  the  figures 
into  some  familiar  object. 

12.  The  teacher  may  put  upon  the  board  a  design  of 
geometric  figures,  —  as  a  border  composed  of  a  repeti- 
tion of  squares  or  of  alternating   squares  and  circles. 
Give  the  children  corresponding  tablets  to  outline  and 
let  them  copy  the  design. 

13.  Give    them   the    tablets  and   let   them  originate 
designs  for  borders. 

Note :  This  should  not  be  attempted  until  after  instruction  in 
the  same  line  has  been  given  in  the  drawing  lessons.  The 
simple  principles  of  order  and  strength  being  understood, 
the  children  will  not  be  tempted  to  create  such  weak  designs 
as  they  otherwise  will. 

14.  Put  upon  the  board  designs  other  than  borders, 
composed  of  geometric  figures,  and  allow  the  children 
to  reproduce  with  tablets. 

15.  Let  them  originate  similar  designs.    (See  No.  13.) 

16.  Put  upon  the  board  designs  composed  of  straight 
lines.     Let  the  children  reproduce  them   upon  paper, 
with  the  aid  of  Prang's  one,  two,  and  three  inch  sticks  to 
secure  right  proportions.     Good  suggestions  for  these 
borders  may  be  obtained   from   "  Elementary  Needle- 
work," by  K.  M.  Foster,  published  by  Prang  Educa- 
tional Company. 

17.  Let  them  originate  borders  in  like  manner.     (See 
note  under  No.  13.) 

18.  Give  each  child  a  pair  of  scissors  and  a  sheet  of 
paper.      Let   him   cut,    freehand,    leaves,    flowers,    and 


112  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

objects  which  he  may  see.  He  may  draw  in  lines  or 
color  afterwards.  This  is  most  excellent  work  at  any 
time.  One  or  two  lessons  in  handling  scissors  and 
holding  paper  properly  should  first  be  given. 

19.  Give   each  child   a  sheet  of  plain  paper  and  a 
tablet  of  any  shape.     The  children  may  cover  the  paper 
with  outlines  of  the  tablet,  and  then  draw  in  each  some 
object,  as  a  butterfly,  violet,  buttercup,  etc.     The  chil- 
dren enjoy  this  very  much  if  the  teacher  selects  the 
best  sheets  to  be  colored  at  some  later  time.     Orderly 
arrangement  should  be  insisted  upon. 

20.  Give  each  child  a  sheet  of  tissue  paper  and  one 
of  ruled  paper.     Let  him  trace  the  ruled  lines  on  the 
tissue   paper,  then   bisect  the  spaces  by  lines  parallel 
to  those  traced.    -Afterwards  cut  the  paper  on  the  lines 
drawn.       Purpose :     Practice    in    drawing   vertical   and 
horizontal  lines.     Do  not  place  dots  and  draw  from  one 
dot  to  another,  but  draw  the  line  freely. 

21.  Give  each  child  a  sheet  of  tissue  paper  and  one 
of  ruled  paper.     Let  him  trace  the  ruled  lines  and  fill 
every  other  space  with  a  border  design,  as  a  row  of 
apples,  of  leaves,  or  flowers,  or  with  symbolic  designs, 
as  three  lines  diverging  from  a  point  to   represent  a 
plant,    horizontally   elongated    diamonds    to    represent 
pollywogs,  oblique  lines  composed  of  dashes  for  driving 
rain,    triangles   for   tents,    etc.      Purpose:    Practice   in 
border  designs. 

22.  Placing  points  and  drawing  from  one  to  another 
is  extremely  cramping  in  its  effect,  and  does  not  develop 
the  idea  of  the  direction  of  line  which  is  one  of  the  first 
things  that  it  seems  wise  to  foster. 

"  Practice  in  drawing  straight  lines  "  should  develop 
this  feeling  and  judgment  of  direction  of  line  and  the 


EXERCISES    IN    DRAWING  113 

manual  ability  of  keeping  the  line  going  in  the  right 
direction  without  the  mechanical  contrivance  of  a  dot  at 
the  end.  A  child  should  be  taught  to  draw  a  square  by 
placing  light,  soft  little  lines  thus 
to  show  the  mass  or  proportion  of 
the  square,  —  the  height  and  width, 
—  then  to  examine  or  test  these, 
and  correct  by  moving  one  line, 
then  to  sketch  the  sides  of  the 
square  through  these  indicated 

lines,  with  no  thought  of  the  corners,  fixing  the  atten- 
tion wholly  upon  the  proportion  of  the  whole. 

23.  Give  each  child  a  one-inch  stick,  a  pencil,  and 
sheet  of  drawing  paper.     Ask  the  children  to  place  the 
stick  on  the  desk  near  the  top  edge  of  the  paper.     Direct 
them  to  notice  its  length,  to  call  it  "  one  inch  long," 
to  place  a  point  by  guess,  on  the  top  edge  of  the  paper, 
one   inch   from   the    corner;    then    to    take    the   stick, 
measure  this  distance,  and  correct,  if  necessary.     Then 
sketch  a  vertical  line  to  the  lower  edge  of  the  paper, 
parallel  to  the  left  edge.     Place  another  point  at  the  top 
edge,  by  guess ;  test,  correct,  sketch  second  line  parallel 
to  the  first,  and  proceed  in  the  same  way  until  paper 
is  filled.     This  may  be  carried  out  similarly  by  placing 
points  on  left  edge  of  paper  and  sketching  horizontal 
lines.     No  point  should  be  placed  at  the  end  of  the  line 
toward  which  the  child  is  drawing.     The  direction  of 
the  line,  not  the  end  of  it,  is  the  important  idea. 

Object :  learning  to  estimate  one  inch,  and  to  sketch 
parallel  lines. 

24.  Give   each   child    a   circular  tablet  one   inch  in 
diameter.     Direct  the  children  to  outline  the  tablets, 
then  to  measure  one-half  inch  to  the  right  and  left  of 

8 


n4  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

this  circle  by  using  the  one-inch  sticks.  Through  these 
points  which  they  have  found  they  may  draw  another 
circle  about  the  first  one.  Then  measuring  as  before, 
they  may  draw  a  third  circle,  and  so  on  until  a  given 
number  of  concentric  circles  has  been  drawn.  Purpose : 
Practice  in  drawing  circles.  (Use  only  after  careful 
teaching.) 

25.  Let  the  children  draw  designs  and  borders  and 
color  them  with  pencils  or  crayons  which  may  be 
bought  for  one  cent  or  five  cents  apiece.  They  may 
also  draw  and  color  leaves  and  flowers  from  nature. 
Useful  all  through  the  year. 

A  great  variety  of  borders,  rosettes,  etc.,  may  be 
planned.  Pegs  may  be  used  for  many  of  these  borders 
and  designs.  At  times  the  children  make  designs  with- 
out a  copy. 

-«*- 

This  suggestion  is  valuable,  but  should  be  used  only  after 
several  lessons  in  designing  borders  have  been  given  to  the 
children  and  the  principle  of  strength  in  arrangement  has 
been  explained. 

Border  lines  made  of  the  Prang  sticks  or  of  shoe  pegs  add 
much  to  the  value  of  the  designs. 

Tablets  placed  overlapping,  or  at  a  sufficient  distance  from 
each  other  to  give  the  feeling  of  their  ability  to  stand  alone, 
will  have  the  necessary  element  of  strength, 


GOOD  CD 


none       oooo 


EXERCISES    IN    DRAWING  n$ 

whereas  tablets  just  touching  each  other  or  just  touching  mar- 
gin lines  seem  weak. 


OOP  OOP 

This  principle  is  easily  understood  by  the  children  and  should 
govern  all  work  in  designing  or  arranging. 

For  more  advanced  work  the  children  may  arrange 
tablets  in  original  designs  on  their  desks  and  then 
draw  them  on  paper,  freehand,  watching  carefully  the 
size  and  proportions  of  the  tablets  and  the  spaces 
between. 

26.  The  teacher  may  collect,  or  she  may  encourage 
the  children  to  collect,  little   pictures  of  objects  based 
on  the  type  forms.     These  may  be  cut  from  advertising 
pages  of  magazines,  etc.     The  pictures  may  be  placed 
in  envelopes   and  given   to   the   children  to  arrange  in 
groups  according  to  the  particular  basic  type. 

27.  Children  may  arrange  and  paste  the  colors  of  the 
spectrum.     At  first  the  six  colors,  red,  orange,  yellow, 
green,  blue,  violet,  are  used ;  later  some  of  the  interven- 
ing colors  are  added. 

Milton  Bradley's  colored  squares  divided  into  sixteen 
oblongs  are  used.  These  give  a  narrow  oblong,  but 
waste  little  paper,  while  the  children  are  working  out 
the  arrangement  of  colors  as  seen  in  the  spectrum. 
Later,  larger  oblongs  may  be  used,  by  dividing  the 
square  into  eight  oblongs. 

28.  Collections  of  scraps  of  pretty  colored  materials 
may  be  made,   placed  in  envelopes,  and  the  children 
allowed  to  sort  according  to  the  six  primary  spectrum 
colors. 


ii6  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

29.  Make  a  collection  of  pasteboard  units  for  designs. 
These  may  be  several   geometric  outlines,  or  units  of 
historic  ornament.     There  should  be  a  large  number  of 
duplicates.     Let  the   children   arrange   these   units   in 
effective  designs  and  copy  and  color  the  designs. 

30.  Allow  each  pupil  to  make  an  individual  sketch- 
book in  which  he  is  free  to  draw  whatever  he  may  choose 
after  other  lessons  are  ended.     As  a  reward  for  diligent 
and  faithful  work,  individual  pupils  may  be  allowed  to 
sketch  out  of  doors ;  or  groups  of  children  may  be  sent 
to  sketch  selected  objects.     Such  exercises  are  partic- 
ularly necessary  in  schools  where  large  number  of  classes 
make  frequent  recitations  impossible,  and  where  variety 
must  be  provided  through  the  busy  work. 


XIV. 

A   SERIES  OF   CHARTS   FOR   BUSY   WORK 
IN   DRAWING 

THE  eight  following  pages  represent  a  chart  which 
the  teacher  may  copy  in  large  size  upon  heavy  manila 
paper,  the  sheets  to  be  fastened  together  and  hung 
upon  the  wall.  The  different  forms  may  be  copied  by 
the  children  with  pegs  or  sticks,  upon  the  desk  or  a 
sheet  of  cardboard. 

Similar  pages  may  be  added  at  the  teacher's  pleasure. 

A  rubber  pen  or  a  wide  drawing  pen  made  for  such 
purposes  should  be  used  in  making  the  chart. 

(The  drawings  for  the  chart  were  prepared  by  Miss  Kate  F. 
Pierce,  Assistant  Director  of  Drawing,  Boston,  whose  courtesy 
and  kindness  are  gratefully  acknowledged.)  ED. 


n8 


PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


DRAWING    CHART    FOR    BUSY    WORK     119 


izo  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


DRAWING    CHART    FOR    BUSY    WORK     121 


o 


122  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


LL 


DRAWING    CHART    FOR    BUSY    WORK     133 


I24 


PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


DRAWING    CHART    FOR    BUSY    WORK      125 


ruum 


UlfZJ 


XV. 
CHILDREN'S   DRAWINGS 

THE  use  of  imaginative  and  illustrative  drawing  is 
most  beneficial  to  the  child,  because  it  gives  the  constant 
practice  of  pencil  handling  that  is  absolutely  necessary. 
It  also  keeps  the  child  in  the  habit  of  trying  to  express 
his  ideas  for  himself.  Both  the  ideas  and  the  drawings 
are  necessarily  crude  at  first,  but  gradually  grow  more 
and  more  complete  through  the  very  trying. 

Older  children,  whose  early  efforts  in  this  direction 
were  not  encouraged,  are  very  unwilling,  and  indeed 
unable,  to  put  their  ideas,  unaided,  upon  paper.  They 
should  not  be  allowed  to  grow  self-conscious,  nor  to 
feel  that  their  crude  attempts  are  of  no  value  or  will 
be  ridiculed. 

The  skilful  teacher  will  use  these  drawings  as  records 
by  which  to  judge  the  progress  of  the  child's  mind,  — 
how  much  he  has  grasped  of  what  she  has  just  been 
telling  him,  how  much  he  observed  in  his  walks,  how 
much  of  a  nature-lesson  he  really  absorbed,  how  much 
of  a  story  he  understood. 

This  work  is  especially  valuable  in  connection  with 
lessons  on  animals.  It  should  never  be  considered  as  a 
result,  but  as  a  means  to  an  end,  —  the  end  that  every 
good  teacher  keeps  always  in  view,  the  growth  of  the 

individual  child. 

KATE   F.  PIERCE. 


CHILDREN'S    DRAWINGS 


127 


HIAWATHA 

"  Of  all  beasts  he  learned  the  language."  Artist  seven 
years  of  age.  He  depicts  the  reindeer,  squirrel,  rabbit, 
and  beaver.  The  latter,  being  less  familiar,  is  drawn 
most  poorly.  The  Indian  has  a  real  Indian  face.  Per- 
spective is  good.  Arrangement  is  good,  indicating  a 
clear  mental  picture  of  the  whole  scene. 


STORY  OF  "THREE  BEARS" 

The  child's  idea  of  relative  size  is  good  and  well 
expressed.  So  also  is  the  action  in  the  figure.  Minor 
details,  buttons,  etc.,  omitted,  and  thought  evidently 
concentrated  on  main  points. 


128 


PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


THE  FIELD  LESSON 

This  child  remembers  the  various  trees  noticed  while 
walking  and  tries  to  depict  them,  distinguishing  them 
by  their  leaves.  Those  given  are  the  most  important 
in  her  estimation.  She  attempts  to  show  road  and 
sidewalk,  and  succeeds,  too.  Arrangement  and  obser- 
vation excellent. 


This  picture  was  drawn  to  illustrate  spelling  lesson, 
the  subject  being  "  A  Frosty  Day."  Words  given  were 
water,  rain,  drops,  ice,  slippery,  snow,  etc.  Note  action 
in  two  figures  at  right;  also  flagging.. 


CHILDREN'S    DRAWINGS 


129 


Drawing  remarkable  on  account  of  the  suggestion  of 
great  numbers  of  men,  arranged  one  behind  the  other 
and  only  parts  of  each  being  shown.  Artist  distin- 
guishes very  well  also  between  the  farmers  and  the 
regulars.  This  drawing  shows  undoubted  influence  of 
some  picture  seen  and  studied. 


WASHINGTON  FIGHTING  THE  FRENCH  AND  INDIANS 

As  explained  by  child,  the  first  man  is  Washington, 
the  next  McKinley;  the  third  one  is  uncertain.  Snow 
on  ground,  consequently  horses'  feet  all  "  balled  up." 
The  army  is  over  at  left  (with  expressive  gesture  over 
desk  at  left  of  paper),  —  "Don't  you  see  them  over 
here  hiding  behind  the  trees?"  Note  "arsenals"  of 
warriors,  shape  of  caps,  etc.,  also  absence  of  ideas 
regarding  historical  sequence.  ° 


PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


BOYS  SKATING 

Unusually  good  action.  Notice  calm  indifference  of 
big  boys  not  playing  hockey.  No  idea  of  perspective, 
but  remarkably  good  observation  of  figures  in  motion. 


THE  FIELD  LESSON 

Artist  seven  years  of  age.  Notice  action  and  arrange- 
ment. It  is  true,  as  he  has  shown,  that  those  children 
at  the  end  are  apt  to  straggle  behind.  No  observation 
of  trees. 


CHILDREN'S    DRAWINGS 


I 

13* 


HIAWATHA 


"  Once  a  warrior  .  .  .  seized  his  grandmother  and 
threw  her,"  etc.  Artist  ten  years  of  age.  Notice  the 
action.  The  grandmother  seems  to  go.  Child  needs 
a  few  hints  as  to  relative  size  of  head  and  body,  etc. 


SNOW  SCENE 

Note  unusual  arrangement.  Child  has  expressed  the 
fact  of  one  object  in  front  of  and  consequently  partially 
covering  another  object.  This  is  very  unusual.  Shows 
a  very  clear  mental  concept  of  the  whole  scene. 


132  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 


PAUL  REVERE'S  RIDE 

The  child's  thought  of  Paul  was  Poll  (parrot).  Note 
beak,  shape  of  body,  etc.  Poor  arrangement,  lack  of 
unity  and  clearness  in  idea  and  grasp  of  the  whole 
thing,  as  well  as  mistaken  concept  of  the  hero. 


LIST  OF  STORIES  OR  INCIDENTS  AND    SCENES  TO 
BE  ILLUSTRATED  BY  DRAWING 

Many  of  ^Esop's  Fables. 

Hiawatha's  childhood. 

Hiawatha's  building  of  canoe. 

Hiawatha's  sailing. 

Hiawatha's  fishing. 

Hiawatha's  learning  language  of  bird  and  beast 

Hiawatha's  shooting  of  the  deer. 

Hiawatha  and  the  pearl  feather. 


CHILDREN'S    DRAWINGS  133 

Red-Riding-Hood. 

Cinderella. 

Goldenhair  and  the  Three  Bears. 

Rhymes  from  Mother  Goose. 

The  first  Thanksgiving. 

Santa  Glaus  and  Reindeer. 

Christmas  tree. 

Stockings  hung  by  chimney. 

Jack  Frost. 

Paul  Revere's  Ride. 

George  Washington  at  the  elm. 

George  Washington  and  the  hatchet. 

Admiral  Dewey  at  Manila. 

A  rainy  day. 

A  windy  day. 

A  summer  day. 

A  winter  day. 

Children  going  to  school. 

Gathering  apples. 

Gathering  chestnuts. 

The  snow  man. 

Jack  and  Mary  run  a  race. 

Our  schoolhouse. 

Peggy's  Christmas  tree. 

The  Ugly  Duckling. 

The  Leak  in  the  Dike. 

Pied  Piper. 

Any  walk  or  picnic  in  which  the  children  all  take  part. 


XVI. 
FOR   PRACTICE   IN   WRITING 

MOTTOES,  PROVERBS,  AND   QUOTATIONS  TO   BE   COPIED 
BY  THE   CHILDREN 

A  MERRY  heart  goes  all  the  day. 

All  great  works  are  made  up  of  little  works  well  done. 

Come,  work  together  with  hearty  good  will. 

Do  noble  things,  not  dream  them. 

He  who  loves  to  know  must  love  to  learn. 

I  '11  do  the  best  that  I  can. 

Learn  to  labor  and  to  wait. 

Not  how  much,  but  how  well. 

There  's  nothing  so  kingly  as  kindness, 

And  nothing  so  royal  as  truth. 

There  is  always  something  going  on  out  of  doors 
worth  looking  at. 

To  thine  own  self  be  true. 

Think  much,  speak  little. 

The  good  deed  lives  through  all  ages. 

What  ought  to  be  done,  can  be  done. 

Work  teaches  us  to  be  faithful. 

Constant  occupation  prevents  temptation. 

Obedience  is  more  seen  in  little  things  than  in  great. 

Obedience  is  the  mother  of  happiness. 

Mistakes  occur  through  haste,  never  through  doing 
a  thing  leisurely. 

Method  will  teach  you  to  win  time. 


FOR    PRACTICE    IN    WRITING  135 

Set  about  whatever  you  intend  to  do ;  the  beginning 
is  half  the  battle. 

Time  is  precious,  but  truth  is  more  precious  than 
time. 

Lost  time  is  never  found  again,  and  what  we  call  time 
enough  always  proves  little  enough. 

He  who  gains  time,  gains  everything. 

A  little  too  late,  much  too  late. 

The  worth  of  a  thing  is  best  known  by  the  want  of  it. 

The  workman  is  known  by  his  work. 

Never  was  good  work  done  without  much  trouble. 

The  result  tests  the  work. 

Good  material  is  half  the  work. 

A  work  ill  done  must  be  twice  done. 

A  work  well  begun  is  half  done. 

The  time  is  never  lost  that  is  devoted  to  work. 

By  the  work  we  know  the  workman. 

Do  the  head  work  before  the  hand  work. 

Scatter  with  one  hand,  gather  with  two. 

Promise  little  and  do  much. 

Patience  is  the  key  of  Paradise. 

At  the  bottom  of  patience  is  Heaven. 

How  poor  are  they  who  have  not  patience. 

Patience  is  the  door  of  joy. 

Patience  opens  all  doors. 

He  who  is  not  ready  to-day  will  be  less  so  to-morrow. 

When  you  have  set  yourself  a  task,  finish  it. 

From  small  beginnings  come  great  things. 

Deserve  success,  and  you  shall  command  it. 

A  child  has  two  ears  and  one  mouth,  that  he  may 
hear  much  and  speak  little. 

Unfading  are  the  gardens  of  kindness. 

Good  to  begin  well,  better  to  end  well. 


i36  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

Cross  words  are  like  ugly  weeds. 

Make  haste  slowly. 

Never  is  a  long  day. 

No  one  is  always  right. 

Tell  me  with  whom  you  go,  and  I  will  tell  you  what 
you  are. 

When  there  is  no  good  within,  no  good  comes  out. 

Not  how  long  you  live,  but  how  well. 

You  can  do  more  good  by  being  good  than  in  any 
other  way. 

Our  thoughts  are  heard  in  Heaven. 

The  wise  man  is  not  he  who  never  makes  a  mistake ; 
but  he  who  never  makes  the  same  mistake  twice. 


JEFFERSON'S  TEN  RULES. 

1.  Never  put  off  until  to-morrow  what  you  can  do 
to-day. 

2.  Never  spend  your  money  before  you  have  it. 

3.  Never  trouble  another  for  what  you  can  do  your- 
self. 

4.  Pride  costs  more  than  hunger,  thirst,  and  gold. 

5.  We  seldom  repent  of  having  eaten  too  little. 

6.  Nothing  is  troublesome  that  we  do  willingly. 

7.  How  much  pain  the  evils  have  cost  us  that  have 
never  happened. 

8.  Take  things  always  by  the  smooth  handle. 

9.  When  angry,  count  ten  before  you  speak,  if  very 
angry,  count  a  hundred. 

10.  Never  buy  what  you  don't  want  because  it  is 
cheap. 


FOR    PRACTICE    IN    WRITING          137 


POOR  RICHARD'S  SAYINGS. 

1.  Many  a  little  makes  a  mickle. 

2.  Three  removes  are  as  bad  as  a  fire. 

3.  A  word  to  the  wise  is  enough. 

4.  God  helps  them  that  help  themselves. 

5.  The  used  key  is  always  bright 

6.  If  you  would  have  your  business  done,  go  ;  if  not, 
send. 

7.  A  small  leak  will  sink  a  great  ship. 

8.  Fools  make  feasts,  and  wise  men  eat  them. 

9.  It  is  hard  for  an  empty  bag  to  stand  upright. 

10.  Rather  go  to  bed  supperless  than  rise  in  debt. 

11.  The  sleeping  fox  catches  no  poultry. 

12.  Sloth  makes  all  things  difficult,  but  industry  all 
easy. 

13.  Plough  deep  while  sluggards  sleep. 

14.  Never  leave  that  till  to-morrow  which  you  can  do 
to-day. 

15.  Handle  your  tools  without  mittens;  the  cat  in 
gloves  catches  no  mice. 

16.  Little  strokes  fell  great  oaks. 

17.  Vessels  large  may  venture  more, 

But  little  boats  should  keep  near  shore. 

18.  Get  what  you  can,  and  what  you  get  hold  ; 

T  is  the  stone  that  will  turn  your  lead  into  gold. 

19.  Remember  that  time  is  money. 

20.  He  that  riseth  late  must  trot  all  day. 

21.  There  are  no  gains  without  pains. 

22.  One  to-day  is  worth  two  to-morrows. 

23.  Be  ashamed  to  catch  yourself  idle. 


,38  PLANS    FOR    BUSY    WORK 

24.  Leisure  is  time  for  doing  something  useful. 

25.  If   you    would    have   a   faithful    servant,    serve 
yourself. 

26.  A  stitch  in  time  saves  nine. 


PROVERBS. 

1.  Train  up  a  child  in  the  way  he  should  go,  and 
when  he  is  old,  he  will  not  depart  from  it. 

2.  Labor  not  to  be  rich. 

3.  A   word   fitly   spoken  is  like  apples  of  gold  in 
pictures  of  silver. 

4.  Let  another  man  praise  thee,  and  not  thine  own 
mouth;  a  stranger,  and  not  thine  own  lips. 

5.  Go  to  the  ant,  thou  sluggard ;  consider  her  ways, 
and  be  wise. 

6.  Hear  instruction,  and  be  wise,  and  refuse  it  not. 

7.  A  wise  son  maketh  a  glad  father ;  but  a  foolish  son 
is  the  heaviness  of  his  mother. 

8.  Lying  lips  are  abomination  to  the  Lord :  but  they 
that  deal  truly  are  his  delight. 

9.  A  soft  answer  turneth  away  wrath;  but  grievous 
words  stir  up  anger. 

10.  A  merry  heart  maketh  a  cheerful  countenance. 

11.  Pride  goeth  before  destruction,  and  a  haughty 
spirit  before  a  fall. 

12.  He   that   is   slow   to   anger   is   better  than    the 
mighty;    and   he   that   ruleth   his  spirit,  than  he  that 
taketh  a  city. 

13.  A  merry  heart  doeth  good  like  a  medicine. 

14.  Even  a  child  is  known  by  his  doings,  whether  his 
work  be  pure,  and  whether  it  be  right. 

15.  Love  not  sleep,  lest  thou  come  to  poverty. 


FOR    PRACTICE    IN    WRITING          139 

16.  A  good  name  is  rather  to  be  chosen  than  great 
riches ;   and  loving  favor  rather  than  silver  and  gold. 

17.  My  son,  if  sinners  entice  thee,  consent  thou  not. 

18.  Be  not  wise  in  thine  own  eyes. 

19.  Happy  is  the  man  that  findeth  wisdom,  her  ways 
are  ways  of  pleasantness,  and  all  her  paths  are  peace. 

20.  Enter  not  into  the  path  of  the  wicked,  and  go  not 
in  the  way  of  evil  men. 

21.  Get  wisdom  ;   and  with  all  thy  getting,  get  under- 
standing. 

22.  Turn  not  to  the  right  hand  nor  to  the  left ;   remove 
thy  foot  from  evil. 

23.  There  be  four  things   which    are  little  upon  the 
earth,  but  they  are  exceeding  wise: 

The  ants  are  a  people  not  strong,  yet  they  prepare 
their  meat  in  the  summer. 

The  conies  are  but  a  feeble  folk,  yet  make  they  their 
houses  in  the  rocks. 

The  locusts  have  no  king,  yet  go  they  forth  all  of  them 
by  bands. 

The  spider  taketh  hold  with  her  hands,  and  is  in 
king's  palaces. 


MTURN  TO  DlM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 


Renewed  books  are  su 

1^5 


W 


NOV301961 


^1_ 

*$r 

F?F|-i^  '•*-•- 

LD  2lA-50m-8,'61 
(C1795slO)476B 


General  Library 
University  of  California 


934O73 


THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


